Orange County, Ind., leaders have compromised with the local Amish community in order to minimize road damage from horseshoes, according to Indiana Public Media.
Richard Dixon, president of the county’s commissioners, told Indiana Public Media that the spikes and studs on the shoes of horses pulling buggies have caused excessive damage.
“We did over $2 million worth of paving in Orange County last year, and within a few weeks, we were already seeing evidence of damage from horseshoes on the new pavement,” Dixon says.
After months of meeting with local Amish, the commissioners and community have reached an informal agreement. From Nov. 1 to April 1, the horses will wear heavy-duty shoes, which Dixon compared to putting snow tires on a car. For the rest of the year, horses should be wearing milder steel in order to damage the roads less.
No official ordinance was created in order to enforce the changes, so the community is charged with policing itself. Meetings between the Amish community and the commissioners are set to continue.
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