A number of changes for the New York carriage industry were discussed by NY city council on Friday
Among the proposed changes:
Manhattan’s carriage horses may soon get an annual five-week vacation and safer working conditions.
Drivers may receive a 47 percent pay raise, which would be their first increase in more than 20 years.
Carriage rides may be restricted to Central Park.
Horse-drawn carriage rides may be phased out in favor of fuel-efficient classic cars.
Horse-drawn carriages may be outlawed.
All possibilities were discussed Friday in a hearing by the City Council’s Consumer Affairs Committee on bills aimed at transforming the horse-drawn carriage industry.
Members of the Teamsters Union Local 553, which represents carriage drivers, and animal rights groups were on hand throughout hours of testimony.
Some speakers urged council members to protect the jobs of the carriage industry’s several hundred drivers and stable hands; others said the horses’ welfare should be a priority.
Most of the council members at the hearing indicated that they supported an industry-backed bill that would require better working and living conditions for the horses and would increase the rate a horse carriage driver could charge to $50 for a half-hour ride, from $34.
The industry-backed bill, sponsored by Councilman James F. Gennaro of Queens and others, has the support of the Bloomberg administration.
Opinions at the hearing varied widely: Leroy Comrie (Queens) said, "The horse carriage industry is part of what makes New York City special," while councilwoman Melissa Mark-Viverito stated, "I don't think it's the only reason why people come to New York—to ride in a horse carriage."
Ms. Mark-Viverito introduced a bill of her own to phase out horse-drawn carriages by April 2012 and replace them with a fleet of zero-emission show cars designed to look like antique automobiles.
Ms. Mark-Viverito said that the cars would make New York a leader in eco-tourism and that they could be operated by the drivers who currently handle the horses’ reins.
Her bill was supported at the hearing by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals; New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets; and the League of Humane Voters.
“It would be a win-win-win,” said John Phillips of the League of Humane Voters. “The horses, the carriage industry and the city would all benefit.”
Stephen Malone, executive director of the Horse and Carriage Association of New York, criticized Ms. Mark-Viverito’s bill for trying to replaces horse carriages in favor of a proposition whose success remains largely speculative.
Another bill would abolish carriages. It is similar to a measure introduced in 2007 by Councilman Tony Avella, who said that the horses were not treated properly.
The fourth bill would restrict the hours of operation for carriages and ban them outside of Central Park.
The hearing, attended by about 200 people, was the first on the bills. If any of them pass the committee, they would go before the full Council.
With files form the New York Times and the Gothamist
