NYC Council Set to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages After 160 Years

New York City's horse-drawn carriage industry, which has operated for more than 160 years, is on the verge of being abolished. The City Council was set to vote Thursday on a bill that would phase out the practice by spring 2028. Mayor Zohran Mamdani has said he will sign the legislation. The bill would end an industry employing around 300 licensed carriage drivers and stabling roughly 68 horses in Hell's Kitchen near Central Park. Drivers, many from Irish-American families in the trade for generations, called it a betrayal, arguing they were misled during the mayoral campaign into believing their livelihoods would be protected. Animal-welfare advocates pointed to approximately 40 carriage horse deaths since 1982, including fatalities from heat exhaustion and traffic accidents. Opponents of the ban counter that the horses are well cared for and that unionised drivers would lose irreplaceable jobs. The phase-out timeline gives drivers and stable owners roughly 18 months to wind down operations.