Action Alerts From Animal Defenders of Westchester (ADOW)

NYC to ban Central Park Carriage Horses

From: Animal Defenders of Westchester (ADOW)
October 13, 2026

We previously mentioned that several yrs ago Animal Defenders of Westchester was invited to closed-door meetings in NYC to ban Carriage Horses there; today it has become reality. Animal advocacy is a long road, not a short one; it's heartbreaking and feels futile...but keep the faith, keep working, keep believing. Letters to the editor: [email protected]


NYC to ban Central Park horse carriages under deal between Mamdani, Menin

From Josephine Stratman, New York Daily News
October 13, 2026

https://www.nydailynews.com/2026/10/13/nyc-to-ban-central-park-horse-carriages-under-deal-between-mamdani-menin/?mrfcid=202610136ace7d53310cf07f6df92b03

New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin announced Tuesday that she and Mayor Mamdani have agreed to a deal to abolish the embattled Central Park horse carriage industry starting in 2028, bringing an end to a longstanding city tradition that has come under increasing criticism in recent years.

The Council is expected to vote on the ban at the next full Council meeting next week.

“Horse-drawn carriages have long been part of New York City’s history, but in an increasingly busy Central Park, this tradition has become a growing public safety liability,” Menin said in a statement. “Next week, the Council will take decisive action by voting on [the bill to ban the industry] to protect New Yorkers, visitors, and the horses themselves.”

Menin said the legislation will also include requirements to develop a plan to employ, give job training or career counseling to horse carriage drivers. That the bill will be coming to a vote next week was first reported by Politico.

“We have been working closely with the City Council, union partners, carriage drivers, animal welfare advocates, and community leaders to deliver a just transition that protects workers while ending horse-drawn carriages in Central Park once and for all,” Sneha Choudhary, a spokesperson for the mayor, said in a statement.

TWU officials could not be reached immediately for comment.

Efforts to ban the industry have stretched for decades, as animal rights activists have long criticized the industry. But unions advocating for the hundreds of carriage drivers have strongly opposed any moves to do away with the industry — with the Transport Workers Union previously indicating it may sue to block a ban.

The death of Romanch Mahajan, an 18-year-old boy killed in Central Park after falling from a runaway carriage horse in June, changed the tide, though, giving calls to ban the industry more urgency.

Romanch’s Law, the bill to ban horse carriages from Central Park, is a reworked version of a bill formerly known as Ryder’s Law, named after a carriage horse that collapsed and died in 2022. It would immediately end the issuance of new medallions for carriage horses, and end the industry entirely in the summer of 2028.

The bill, which has 29 listed sponsors, has zoomed through the typically-lengthy legislative process.

Edita Birnkrant, executive director of New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets, or NYCLASS, thanked Menin for the pending ban on the industry.

“This moment belongs to the advocates and supporters who have spent years fighting with NYCLASS to protect horses and people on our city’s streets,” Birnkrant said in a statement. “Romanch’s death was a heartbreaking loss that laid bare the devastating consequences of this deadly industry. We thank his family for turning their grief into a powerful call for change.”

The mayor had previously said he supports the ban on the industry but was concerned about having more worker protections in the bill.

With Evan Simko-Bednarski

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