Compromise carriage horse plan for NYC falters when Teamsters withdraw support

Posted on by Tuesday's Horse

We were never in favor of this bill but have been following it. We initially had a decent working relationship with the Mayor’s Office but they became increasingly unreceptive to the idea of the Mayor doing what it takes to keep his campaign promises. So we have moved our efforts to Albany. —Editor

CBS NEW YORK REPORTS:

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – The City Council is postponing a vote on a bill to restrict horse-drawn carriages to Central Park after the Teamsters Union withdrew its support, citing concerns about their jobs.

The vote on the compromised plan, which was initially supported by the union, Mayor Bill de Blasio and City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, was set to take place on Friday.

But the Teamsters announced Thursday that they can’t support the bill in its current form.

“The Teamsters’ first priority is always our members and their livelihoods,” said George Miranda, president of Teamsters Joint Council 16 which represents the horse-drawn carriage workers. “With the legislation now finalized, our members are not confident that it provides a viable future for their industry. We cannot support the horse carriage bill currently before the City Council.”

Mark-Viverito said the bill “was negotiated in good faith and was contingent on an agreement between the administration, the Teamsters, and the City Council.”

“The Council will not vote on any horse carriage-related legislation on Friday since the Teamsters no longer support the deal.”

The proposal called for several changes, including reducing the number of licensed horses and limiting them to Central Park where the animals would live in tax-payer funded stables.

It also included a ban on pedicabs from operating in Central Park below 85th Street.

• Read full report »

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6 thoughts on “Compromise carriage horse plan for NYC falters when Teamsters withdraw support”

  1. Thank goodness this bill was rejected. Cutting the number of horses in half would have doubled the work for the remaining horse. Why would @nyclass propose a law that would hurt the horses, I wonder.

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    1. because it would have limited the hours the horses can work and would have given them stalls big enough to lay down in and kept them off streets with trucks taxis cars buses etc.. better than no changes also was supposed to give them 5 weeks off a year in a barn and pasture

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  2. The Teamsters Union needs to learn about how carriage horses are exhausted and abused by some owners and then act to enforce strict animal welfare standards. No horse should be overworked, yet many have collapsed. The busy streets of New York, given high volume of traffic, are not safe for horses. Restrict them to Central Park.

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    1. We have long ago quit trying to figure out why anyone believes or supports what they do in NYC on the carriage horse issue, I don’t care what side they pretend to be on. I can assure you it is all about the two legged workers and nothing to do with the health and safety of the four legged ones. Shocking how phony it all is.

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