The Debate Continues Over Central Park Carriage Horse Bill

On a chilly early morning in March, the beat of hooves clicking on pavement still sounds out in the relative silence of the dawn. Every morning, the carriage drivers of Central Park wake when it’s still dark to making their way to the stables, each housing hundreds of horses in identical berths. They clean the stalls, water the horses, put on tack, before finally departing, headed to the outer perimeters of the park to look for their first customers of the day.

Central Park has been home to a multitude of carriage drivers and horses since its creation in 1857. These vehicles have become a well known tourist attraction, as well as a visible reminder of New York’s cultural heritage. They provide entertainment to visitors and natives alike, temporarily giving riders a taste of the old ways. In many ways, the Central Park horse drawn carriages have become an indisputable landmark, a symbol of New York city as inextricable as the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State building.

This is not to say that the carriages have not had their share of detractors. Over the years, the practice of operating horse drawn vehicles on the same roads that automobiles use has come under fire from safety concerned citizens and professional drivers alike. Critics also impugn the horses themselves, characterizing them as smelly, distracting, and potentially even dangerous hazards. In addition, animal rights groups have implicated the practice as being cruel to the horses, who they claim are made to work in unsafe conditions and harsh weather.

These criticisms have culminated in a bill put forward by New York Mayor Bill de Blasio. This piece of legislation would not completely eliminate the practice, and instead opts to reduce the total number of carriage drivers within the next few years. It also arranges for more stables to be built in Central Park, which will hopefully ensure that horses are kept in modern and humane conditions.

While this bill has garnered much support from organization that include The Teamsters and a number of groups for the prevention of the ethical treatment of animals, it has also proved controversial among certain circles. Critics argue that government money should not be spent on facilities that will largely only see private usage. They also express concern about funds going to housing horses when the homelessness problem in the city continues to grow. The bill will go to vote in the city council later this year.