The Bill to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages in NYC gets a hearing - Intro 943
Elizabeth Forel
The Bill to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages in NYC gets a hearing - Intro 943Some history and the hearing
It was an exciting day. Finally, after decades, a bill to ban horse-drawn carriages in NYC looked like a reality. There are 51 NYC Council members. Bill Intro 943 has 26 sponsors + Speaker Julie Menin. If these members are not pressured by the union to change their vote, it is destined to finally pass. However, it does need some tweaking relative to the jobs issue. The bill is currently in the Health Committee, which has 9 members. 6 members support the bill, but it includes the Chair, Lynn Schulman, who has sponsored both bills (943 & 937), 2 support 937, and one, Felder, has not supported either. The bill would have to be voted out of the Health Committee, but even with 5 votes, it will pass. Then it goes before the entire council and needs 26 votes to pass. Then on to Mayor Mamdani. This is the closest we’ve ever been. I first became aware of the NYC carriage horses in the late 1980s and early 1990s when the Carriage Horse Action Committee (CHAC) , headed by Peggy Parker, was leading the charge. At that time, carriage horses were working in many parts of Manhattan. Peggy was not even able to get a law passed to keep them in the park. Here is some history from my old website, which I keep up for reference. This link is to the documented history by the Carriage Horse Action Committee. Peggy Parker passed away a few years ago. Friends of Animals at the Hearing
In 2006, I started the Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages in response to the death of 5-year-old Spotty, who was returning to his stable when, on 9th Avenue and 50th Street, he spooked and crashed into a station wagon. He was badly injured and euthanized on the spot.
A treasure trove of photos from the first campaign https://www.facebook.com/BanHDC/photos Intro 658, the bill that I worked on with CM Tony Avella, had a hearing in the City Council in 2007. This bill laid the historical groundwork for what was to come in future campaigns. However, it did not have the support of Speaker Christine Quinn or Mayor Bloomberg, although his daughter, Georgina, an equestrian, supported it. Why? This is a tiny industry with outsized reach into the political system. What’s really going on here? Is it just plain old Tammany Hall/Boss Tweed shenanigans - or is money laundering happening? After all, it is a mostly cash-only business on the street with incompetent and inadequate oversight. That we clearly saw with testimony from the Department of Health and the Department of Consumer Affairs at the hearing. This time it feels different. But why did it take the death of a young man, Romanch Mahajan, an Indian tourist, with his life ahead of him, to gain more support from the City Council and Speaker Julie Menin? We’ve been warning about the possibility of a human death for years. The position of the carriage trade is that other industries like e-bikes have more deaths - so why target them? I’m wondering how many human deaths they think are too many. Five people, ten people? One is not enough. The grief of this family was not enough. This business knew they were mired in growing criticism for years, yet, like children, they wanted their own way and were never willing to compromise. The City will be sued for millions by the Mahajan family, as they should be. We warned for decades about this possibility. Horse deaths, property damage, and human injury did not count - and we warned of the very real possibility of a person dying. This family lost a treasured son - their oldest - a young man who had been accepted into one of the top universities in India, who jumped out of the out-of-control driverless carriage to save his mother, who had fallen out of the carriage onto the ground. He hit his head and died. The parents and other relatives testified on Zoom at the hearing. Other relatives testified in person. It was heartbreaking. Yet - the carriage drivers stood their ground. COUNCIL TESTIMONY ON YOUTUBEI chose not to testify in person because I did not want to wait until late in the day when the only one left would be the chair of the Health Committee. But I have a lot to say, and I submitted it online and reproduced it below. It was 8 pages, but I covered everything from years of research and experience. 
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MY TESTIMONY:
TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF INTRO 943 to PHASE OUT THE NYC CARRIAGE HORSE BUSINESS NYC COUNCIL COMMITTEE ON HEALTH
JULY 15, 2026
Elizabeth Forel / Coalition for NYC Animals, Inc
My name is Elizabeth Forel, and I am the president of the Coalition for NYC Animals. In 2006, I started the first-ever ban campaign under the subcommittee Coalition to Ban Horse-Drawn Carriages after the tragic accident involving Spotty, a carriage horse who spooked, crashed, and died on 9th Avenue and 50th St. on his way back to his stable. The driver was sitting in the box seat but could not control the reins when Spotty spooked.
I also write a Substack, Animals Matter, and co-produced the website Compassionate Tourism about electric horseless carriages.
I thank all the Council Members who have signed on as sponsors to Intro 943. To those who have not, please know that Intro 943 does not abandon the drivers. Instead, it mandates a workforce transition program to retrain and place these workers in stable, sustainable jobs – with the opportunity to get benefits such as medical, vacation, sick days and retirement – something they do not currently have.
The new poll by the Central Park Conservancy showed that 68% of New Yorkers support legislation to prohibit horse-drawn carriage operations in the city. Other polls have shown 70-80%.
THIS IS MY TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF INTRO 943 AND OPPOSED TO INTRO 937.
Why the horse-carriage business should be banned in NYC:
ACCIDENTS
Horses are nervous and sensitive prey animals who can spook and bolt at the slightest provocation – a loud unexpected noise, from a truck engine to an umbrella opening. They can become unwitting weapons, injuring or killing themselves, passersby – or destroying property. At 1500 to 2000 pounds, they are extremely powerful and difficult to control. This business should not be operating in one of the most congested cities in the world – whether the streets or crowded Central Park.
I have been keeping tabs on the number of REPORTED accidents involving carriage horses for years. Drivers who are involved in an accident are not required to report it. The way the accidents are publicized is if the police or media are notified. My documentation goes back to July 18, 1982. Since that time, there have been 128 accidents, 30 horse deaths, and tragically, 1 human death.
The industry bill, Intro 937, is focusing on the use of hitching posts in Central Park – purportedly to prevent a horse from spooking. It is ill-advised and could seriously hurt or kill a horse who spooked while tied to a post. It is shocking that these so-called “horse experts” would suggest such folly. Further, horses don’t just spook in Central Park where the union wants to install hitching posts. My records (linked in this document) reveal that in the last ten years, there have been 11 serious spooking accidents outside Central Park.
This is a recent Substack on this issue with comments from two equine experts:
HITCHING POSTS for Carriage Horses in NYC - a bad, ill-advised, deceptive, and desperate idea
It is wrong to assume that just because horses are tied to a post, they will not spook and bolt. And in this case, they could break their neck.
With the recent tragic death of young Romanch Mahajan in a horse spooking accident, it is incontrovertible proof that the current system is unsafe for humans and inhumane for animals.
HUGE HORSE TURNOVER IN THIS BUSINESS
In 2013, I published a 7 ½ year study of horses in the carriage business – https://banhdc.org/whatwillhap.shtml.
By tracking city records, this study revealed that an average of 71 horses vanished from the Department of Health rolls every single year, totaling 529 horses over a 7 ½ year period starting from the end of 2005. They were replaced by 516 horses. Although some of the horses might have gone to a good retirement, we believe that this high turnover mostly represents horses who became lame, sick, too nervous, or too old to work and were quietly pulled from the registry to be sold off. There is nothing to indicate that this pattern has changed.
Carriage horses seen in Central Park are only a fraction of the total animals passing through the system. This is something the public generally does not comprehend. They often believe that if the business were to end, the horses would go to slaughter – when that is exactly what might be happening now. Advocates want to offer a sanctuary solution for all the horses.
Because the law does not require specific information, many of the horses most likely went to the auctions, such as New Holland Sales Stables in Pennsylvania, which is held every Monday, where they may be purchased by kill buyers and shipped to Canada and Mexico for slaughter.
The NYC law states this: § 17-329 Disposition of licensed horse.
“ The department shall be notified of the transfer of ownership or other disposition of a licensed horse within ten days thereafter. Such notice shall include the date of disposition and if sold in New York city, the name and address of the buyer or other transferee and such other information as the commissioner may prescribe. A horse shall not be sold or disposed of except in a humane manner.”
In other words, the Department of Health only requires the name and address of the buyer if the horse was sold in NYC, which would most likely be to another carriage driver. It does not address the issue of horses being sold outside NYC, which would likely be to an Amish farm or directly to the horse auctions.
In 2010, I was notified of a NYC carriage horse (identified by his hoof number) at the New Holland, PA auction. He had been purchased by a kill buyer who was then convinced to work with a broker to see if he could get more money. This was Friday, June 25, 2010, and the horse would have been put back in the kill pen the next day, most likely on his way to the slaughter pipeline in Canada or Mexico.
This is a tribute to that horse - who was rescued and became known as Bobby II Freedom and was much loved. . https://myemail.constantcontact.com/Remembering-Former-NYC-Carriage-Horse-Bobby-II-Freedom.html?soid=1103168065014&aid=YxwTN8B5FEA
Horses in the carriage trade will find good placement, and the issue is currently being considered and researched. However, the horses are privately owned, and it is up to the horse owners if they want to sell. It is hoped they will not sell to another carriage business – or take the horse to auction – as they did with Bobby II Freedom. There are many horse sanctuaries and responsible horse owners throughout the country who would be happy and honored to provide a good home to a NYC carriage horse.
If the horses go to the kill auctions, it is the owner who brings them there - they don’t go of their own volition.
CARRIAGE HORSE STABLES
Carriage horse stables in NYC are fundamentally inadequate. There are three carriage horse stables located on the far west side of Manhattan between W. 37th St. and W. 52nd St. Horses are allowed by law to work nine hours a day, seven days a week. By NYC law, the stalls, most of which are on upper floors, accessed by a steep ramp, must be a minimum of 60 sq. ft. Yet equine experts recommend 144 sq. ft (12 x 12) for a standardbred horse and 196 sq.ft.(14 x 14) for larger draft horses.
Horses need daily turnout or pasture time to socialize with other horses, to play, run, buck, and roll; to mutually groom one another. They continue to be deprived of this most basic need because, again, there simply is not the space in NYC, which confirms this business needs to end. A so-called 5-week yearly “vacation” is grossly unsatisfactory.
In 2014, while visiting one of the stables, the Daily News reported on a comment made by actor Danny Glover: “I think people need to come by to see the product themselves.” This revealing comment says it all – to the carriage trade and their supporters, horses are “products”– not sentient beings.
Please look at the comments made in a NY Times article when Christine Quinn orchestrated a similar fiasco in 2010. The first comment by “Elizabeth” is mine.
Because the stables are located blocks away from Central Park, horses must walk up to 1.5 miles each way through dense Midtown traffic, breathing in heavy exhaust fumes and enduring sensory overload before their workday even begins – and on the return trip. It’s been described as a “nose-to-tailpipe” existence.
In the summer, when the business has been suspended, the industry allows the drivers an additional half hour to complete their rides – then the horses walk over steaming hot asphalt on their way back to the stables.
GOOD UNION JOBS??: The Transit Workers Union (TWU) represents/supports the Carriage drivers – but these are not “good union jobs.” There are 68 privately owned businesses (or 68 medallions/carriages). The NY Times reports there are approximately 110 active carriage drivers who do not own a medallion. It is hard to know the exact number because the fee to renew this license is about $30 every two years – and as with many jobs that require a license, renewal is preferred.
Non-owner NYC horse carriage drivers typically operate as independent contractors – like gig workers- rather than direct employees. They pay a “lease” fee or commission to the medallion/carriage owner out of their daily earnings and keep the rest as their pay, which relies entirely on customer fares and tips.
They do not get any benefits such as sick days, paid vacation, medical coverage, workers’ compensation, unemployment benefits, or retirement benefits. The same holds true for the owners who, if they want health insurance, must buy their own policies.
A real union job—such as a position with the City of New York —would provide meaningful benefits and protection, and very likely real union membership. This is something that CM Chris Marte’s Intro 943 will address by creating a humane transition plan that supports drivers while ending the carriage horse trade.
Why deny this to the workers just to help make the TWU more powerful?
ELECTRIC HORSELESS CARRIAGES
For many years, we have been concerned about the drivers’ jobs if the carriage trade were to end. When we visited Guadalajara on a fact-finding mission to see the former horse carriage drivers with their beautiful electric horseless carriages, we thought this was the job solution for NYC. A win/win situation. The Mexican drivers loved the carriages; they made more money, did not have to worry about equine care, and loved the way the public received them. This is the website
https://compassionatetourism.org/
However, when we returned to NYC, the union (Teamsters) told us they had no interest. No compromise. The TWU eventually said the same. Why?
To be clear, I no longer support the addition of these carriages on the congested NYC streets.
Many people have lost their jobs and have had to recreate themselves. It is common. Sometimes, the job became obsolete; sometimes, layoffs occurred due to the economy. Most people do not have the City of NY looking to help them in a transition. But Intro 943 does just that.
INTRO 943 SHOULD NOT BE IN THE HEALTH COMMITTEE
The Health Committee is chaired by CM Lynn Schulman, who has a history of opposing bills to ban horse-drawn carriages. For the 2021 election, she secured the endorsement of Voters for Animal Rights by checking “yes” to a question directly asking whether she would support a citywide ban on horse-drawn carriages. After winning the seat, she was appointed Chair of the Health Committee, where subsequent bills to phase out the carriages were sent. She refused to move the bill forward for four years.
By that time, Schulman had also received the endorsement of the Transport Workers Union (TWU), which represents the carriage drivers. Later, as Chair of the Health Committee, she abstained from voting on a revived 2025 carriage ban bill (Ryder’s Law), effectively allowing the legislation to die in committee. Schulman was the second sponsor of the industry bill, Intro 937.
As of Friday, July 10th, Schulman also added her name as a sponsor of Intro 943 while still sponsoring Intro 937. I understand the pressure from both sides of this issue – but because of her strong alliance with the TWU actively backing the carriage trade’s preservation, I question how fair a hearing there will be on Intro 943 – or even the ultimate vote out of committee and to the entire Council. I fear she will not be a neutral arbiter in the Council.
There is plenty of evidence to show that Intro 943, the bill to phase out the horse carriage trade, is the right thing to do.
Although it is probably too late now, the bill should have been moved to another unbiased committee. It could have been Transportation, Parks & Recreation or Consumer & Worker Protection. Or CM Shulman should have recused herself from involvement with these bills.
TWU – THEIR POWER IN NYC
There is no doubt that the unions in NYC are very powerful. Most of us are union supporters – they helped to create the middle class, and we acknowledge and respect that. But when they are bullies and aggressors, it is a different scenario. The TWU likes to position this issue as one between “wealthy elites,” especially in the real estate business, and working class/immigrant families.
It is patently and demonstrably not true!
Between 71% and 80% of NYC voters support shutting down this business on the grounds of animal welfare, cruelty, and public safety. We are not involved in the real estate industry, nor are we wealthy.
However, many of the owners of the 68 medallions are asset-heavy wealthy entrepreneurs, sitting on multi-million-dollar Manhattan land. And some even live in other states and countries, not directly involved.
The TWU pressures City Council members with primary challenges and pulling campaign financial support. This is a common tactic, and there are many NYC council members who have succumbed to this. It is likened to the Republicans in Congress who do Donald Trump’s bidding for fear of losing their seat.
The danger of this in the NYC government is that fewer and fewer people will vote because it is so corrupt.
When a union can force some politicians to quietly strip their names from a bill, kill it in committee, or not support it at all, it proves that lawmakers are ultimately accountable to their financial and organizational backers, not their constituents. This breeds intense public cynicism and distrust and causes regular voters to feel that participating in local politics is pointless.
The fairness of our democratic process hangs in the balance, and so does the integrity of the City Council.
My advice to these council members is to represent your constituents – this is why you were elected.
We, the people, deserve much better.
By opposing and blocking Ryder’s/Romanch’s law, the union’s manipulation has tangible, dangerous real-world consequences. It means that documented hazards—like sensitive horses – prey animals - navigating gridlocked Midtown traffic or congested Central Park – and now the first death of a person –Romanch Mahajan - are allowed to persist solely to protect a “business model. “
This is the current position taken by the carriage business:
“Onur Altintas, who owns four horses and a carriage operating in Central Park, was among those worried about an end to their livelihood. He said the industry provides hundreds of jobs to drivers, stable hands, farriers, and others in horse-related trades.
“We are sad about what happened. Nobody wants that. But it’s not like this is happening every day,” said Altintas. “Car crashes and plane crashes are happening every single day. One horse makes an accident, and the world is destroyed? Come on.”
I wonder how Mr. Altintas would have felt if it were his son or nephew.
The council under the former leadership had killed Ryder’s Law and effectively shielded the assets of a few owners for their own political careers –prioritizing private profit margins over public welfare. (Adrienne Adams and Lynn Schulman)
Surely, this City is better than that. But is it! It remains to be seen.
MORE ON POLICY STAGNATION AND PRECEDENT
When some members of the City Council give in to union bullying on one niche issue, it signals weakness and sets a dangerous precedent that any robust or modern policy reform can be entirely paralyzed if a powerful union claims it affects their membership and influence.
Progress is deadlocked because politicians are too afraid of losing their next primary to pass responsible laws that go against the unions. They prioritize their own re-election over public safety and horse welfare.
This is Trumpism under a different name.
But the general public did not vote the Union into Council positions.
REAL ESTATE ISSUE:
The “real estate” issue is discussed on the TWU website. To people who don’t practice critical thinking, they may believe that NYClass, the not-for-profit organization that has spearheaded this campaign, simply wants the valuable land on which the three existing stables sit.
But it is absurd to target Steve Nislick, the founder of NYClass. Does anyone really think that he has been coveting this property for twenty-plus years? If it even came to that, the property owners do not have to sell to him. As a matter of fact, they don’t have to sell at all. They could rent their lucrative real estate resources for vehicle storage or garages, event spaces such as galleries, artist studios, private dog boarding, and veterinary clinics. Real estate experts estimate their combined value at $65 million to $70 million. Their families would not only be set for life, but the owners could give the drivers a good share of it.
TOURISTS - WHY DO THEY COME TO NYC?
Tourists come to NYC to experience the dynamism of the City; to visit premier cultural institutions such as world-class museums and music venues; to see architectural landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, and the World Trade Center; and first-rate restaurants and Broadway theaters.
If they are around the Central Park area, taking a carriage horse ride is an afterthought. Tourists do not come to NYC solely to take a carriage ride.
Tourist guidebooks like Frommer’s no longer promote NYC horse-drawn carriages due to ethical, safety, and animal cruelty concerns. Fodor’s strongly discourages New York City carriage horse rides, emphasizing animal welfare. Both are among the top travel guidebooks in the US.
REGARDING THE “PHASE Out” IN INTRO 943
The bill will not take effect for two years after passage. Please reconsider this. Many deadly accidents can occur in two years.
COMMENTS ON INDUSTRY BILL INTRO 937 – OPPOSED
The Advisory Board was enacted in 1981 – written into the NYC Administrative Code – Statue 17-331. It’s never been successful, and there is no reason to think resurrecting it will be different. Because it was to be made up of stakeholders with diametrically opposed views, the board could rarely reach a consensus – and it disbanded.
In addition, the board is toothless and has no regulatory or enforcement power.
7:00 AM new starting time – this is the beginning of the morning rush hour with high commuter volume. It would make little difference. Horses are allowed to work nine hours a day and would be returning at 4:00 PM, which is the evening rush hour. Many drivers take their horses out later and may work until 3:00 AM.
Weather – this bill would require that the National Weather Service be used to determine suspensions. Presently, the street-level thermometer used is considered superior. It measures the actual temperature that the horses experience on asphalt, determined at each of the three hack lines.
I believe the industry and TWU do not like this because the drivers have lost more time since the Real Heat bill, Intro 1425-A, went into effect in 2020. Before this bill passed, the city only suspended carriage operations based on a raw temperature of 90°F. Intro 1425-A legally forced the city to factor in relative humidity, establishing the Equine Heat Index (EHI) threshold of 150. This is a good explanation – on banhdc.org
Hitching Posts – Please read this: HITCHING POSTS for Carriage Horses in NYC - a bad, ill-advised, deceptive, and desperate idea
Please support and vote for Intro 943 and shut down this dangerous business. It’s the right thing to do for the horses, the drivers who will get better jobs, public safety, and the citizens of NYC.
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© 2026 Elizabeth Forel
Coalition for NYC Animals, Inc, PO Box 20247
Park West Station, New York, NY 10025
