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A pair of fare-evading horses trotted onto a public bus in Detroit over the weekend in an apparent social media stunt criticized by the city’s transportation department.
As the two horses were boarding the Detroit Department of Transportation bus near 7 Mile and Strasburg Street last Saturday, passerby Ellessia Drew whipped out her phone to capture the unusual and startling sight.
“I was thinking, like, ‘Oh my God, what about the people on the bus? What if the horse used the bathroom on the bus?” Drew told WXYZ. “Like, what’s going on?”
At the start of the now-viral video, two handlers are seen guiding the stallions toward the city bus while its front ramp is lowered.
When the first horse resisted boarding, its handler tapped the ramp to signal to the driver to raise it.
The sneaky stallions then happily trotted onto the bus one by one, walked through its aisle and exited out the rear door moments later.
While the footage has gone viral for the absolute absurdity of two hulking horses boarding a bus, it was apparently a spur-of-the-moment stunt by an organization to draw attention to its presence in Detroit.
Co-founder of Urban City Cowboys Jordan Williams said he spotted the bus after a fundraiser where children were given horseback rides and decided to snap a quick video.
“It wasn’t like I was tracking down the bus,” Williams told the local station. “The point is just to bring light to… like there are cowboys that look like us.”
Williams — who claims he’s taken his horses on several DDOT buses over the years — said he spoke with the bus driver before deciding to walk the horses on.
“We’ve been on the Jefferson, we’ve been on the Chalmers, we’ve been on the Conners and now on the 7 Mile,” Williams joked.
The clip amassed hundreds of thousands of views online, but the DDOT slammed the stunt, saying it “potentially create[d] an unsafe and uncomfortable ride for our passengers.”
“DDOT is aware of a recent incident where two horses were allowed to walk through a bus as it was pulled over at a bus stop,” the department said in a statement to WXYZ.
“We are taking appropriate steps to address this incident as it is not consistent with DDOT policy and potentially creates an unsafe and uncomfortable ride for our passengers.”
The department noted that while service animals are allowed on buses, they “must be under control by the person with disabilities at all times, must not occupy a seat, and must either sit on the floor, or on the person’s lap” — essentially ruling out horses from hitching a ride.
However, Williams said he hopes the city understands he was simply trying to have a little fun and cast a light on urban equestrians.
“I hope DDOT looks at it like a joke like everyone else, and hopefully they come out to a rodeo,” he quipped.
