New York – Mayor Bill de Blasio assured animal-rights activists during his run for City Hall that he would rid Central Park of horse-drawn carriages, which he called inhumane.
"We are going to get rid of the horse carriages, period," de Blasio said a few days before taking office Jan. 1. "It's over."
Now, 10 months into his term, tourists still pay $50 for a 20-minute trot through the park, while at City Hall, a draft for legislation has yet to be written and no one is saying why. Not de Blasio, not council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and not other members who called for a ban.
At stake, aside from holding a politician to a promise, are the jobs of 300 drivers, blacksmiths and stable hands, some of the most visible players in New York's $39 billion tourist industry. It's also a test of de Blasio's ability to balance a campaign vow with his ties to organized labor, which opposes a ban.
About 50 animal-rights activists demonstrate regularly at City Hall, where they urge the mayor to keep his promise and call the horse-drawn surreys cruel.
"The carriage drivers are incredibly lawless; there were many instances of hit-and-runs," said Allie Feldman, spokeswoman for New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets, a nonprofit group that's advocated a ban.
Wiley Norvell, a spokesman for the mayor, said the administration is weighing a range of options "that move the horses off our streets, safeguard the animals and protect the livelihoods of the men and women who provide carriage rides."
Bloomberg News
