New York bans horse-drawn carriages after decadelong battle

A horse pulls a carriage through Central Park in New York City on Wednesday. | REUTERS

Oct 23, 2026

New York’s City Council voted to ban horse-drawn carriages, ending a Central Park tourist staple dating to the 19th century after years of debate over the horses’ place on city streets.

The Council voted 40 to 7 to pass the bill Thursday, which Mayor Zohran Mamdani is expected to sign. Two members abstained. The ban takes effect June 1, 2028, and prohibits the sale of horses for slaughter or their transfer to other carriage companies.

The vote ends a fight that has simmered for more than a decade, pitting the city’s roughly 150 carriage drivers and their union against animal-rights advocates and drawing in politicians and celebrities on both sides. Supporters see the clip-clop of hooves through Central Park as part of New York’s appeal, romanticized in film and television; critics say horse-drawn carriages are an anachronism ill-suited to the city’s traffic, pollution and crowded streets.

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