Horse-drawn carriages in New York will continue, as council rejects new bill
Despite widespread public support and celebrity backing, a bill to ban horse-drawn carriages in NYC was rejected by City Council.
A bill to phase out the controversial operation of horse-drawn carriages in the city of New York has been defeated.
At a council meeting at City Hall on November 14, the Committee on Health voted against the bill by 4 to 1, with 2 abstentions.
The proposed legislation sought to end the operation of horse-drawn carriages in the city from June 1, 2026. In addition, a government program would help carriage drivers find alternative means of employment.
Robert Holden (D-Queens), the bill’s primary sponsor, argued that the constant traffic, noise, and pollution of the city represented a dangerous and unhealthy environment for the horses. “Manhattan is no place for horses,” he said. “Horses need corrals, fields to run in, and to be with other horses.”
Mayor of New York City, Eric Adams, took to X to voice his disappointment. "The vast majority of New Yorkers – regardless of party or belief – agree that it's time we ban horse carriages now," he wrote. "It's a shame that the City Council has once again refused to follow the will of our citizens, while simultaneously endangering pedestrians, drivers, and animals alike."
Collapsed Ryder in the viral footage. Credit: Voters For Animal Rights
Introduced in 2024, the bill was named Ryder’s Law, in memory of a carriage horse who collapsed in Hell’s Kitchen during a heatwave of August 2022, and who later died.
The city charged Ryder’s driver with one count of overdriving, torturing and injuring animals, and failure to provide proper sustenance, but he was acquitted in July of this year.
Traumatic footage of Ryder’s collapse quickly circulated online, and exposed the inhumane conditions inflicted upon carriage horses, who are made to work up to nine hours per day, seven days per week, and in all weather conditions.
Currently, only when the temperature exceeds 90 degrees are riders prohibited to work their horses. There are no laws regarding blizzards and snow.
Unsurprisingly, given the lack of legal safeguarding, there have been further instances of carriage horses worked to exhaustion.
In August of this year, Lady, a 15-year-old carriage horse, collapsed and died while returning to her stables. Indeed, campaigners have criticized the stables as “filthy, restrictive, and inhumane.” Located in Manhattan, the stables offer the horses no respite from the constant noise and pollution of city life.
Holden also argued that horses are prey animals, whose instinct is to bolt when feeling scared or overwhelmed. As such, carriage horses have fled into oncoming traffic or pedestrians, often causing serious injury to all concerned.
The Animal Legal Defense Fund has uncovered over a dozen ‘hit and run’ incidents involving New York City carriage drivers over a five year-period.
Numerous celebrities spoke out in support of Ryder’s Law, including Billie Eilish, Ricky Gervais, and New York native, Rooney Mara, while a recent poll showed that 71% of New Yorkers support a ban on horse and carriage rides “because of numerous charges of abuse of the horses.”
Horse-drawn carriages have already been banned in cities across the country, including Biloxi, Chicago, Key West, Palm Beach, and Salt Lake City.
A longtime opponent of horse-drawn carriages, Holden has vowed to continue fighting for Ryder’s Law, but fears the Council will only act “if somebody is killed.
What can you do?
Join 8,687 other Species Unite supporters in urging New York councilors to end the horse drawn carriage industry and pass Ryder’s Law. Add your name to the petition here.
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