City Council Speaker Julie Menin and Mayor Zohran Mamdani agreed on legislation to end horse-drawn carriages in Central Park by June 2028. The Council will vote on this bill next week. Mr. Mamdani said his administration "will make sure workers and owners are protected and the horses are safe."
Under legislation backed by City Council Speaker Julie Menin and Mayor Zohran Mamdani, the use of horse-drawn carriages in Central Park would end by June 2028.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the leader of the City Council have agreed on legislation that would eliminate the use of horse-drawn carriages in Central Park, a goal of animal rights activists for more than 150 years.
The legislation, which would ban the carriages by June 2028, will be voted on by the Council next week. Julie Menin, the Council speaker, said she believed the bill would pass the 51-member Council with a veto-proof majority.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Mamdani declined to say whether the mayor would sign the bill into law but added that "a deal had been struck" with Ms. Menin over the legislation.
The use of horse-drawn carriages has long been a hot-button issue, and the pressure to ban the rides escalated this summer, when Romanch Mahajan, an 18-year-old tourist from India who was riding in a carriage with his family, died in a fall from a carriage.
In July, after Mr. Mahajan's death, Mr. Mamdani said he supported "the spirit" of the legislation but added, "We are, however, critical of the insufficiencies of the worker protections." The bill as written would allow the city to "consider" compensating drivers, providing job placement training and career counseling.
On Tuesday, Mr. Mamdani said on social media that his administration "will make sure workers and owners are protected and the horses are safe."
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