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Carriage Horses to Get Vacation Time Thanks to New Bill

By DNAinfo Staff on April 15, 2010 11:51am  | Updated on April 15, 2010 11:14am

Horses will get five-weeks of vacation, according to a bill passed by the City Council Wednesday.
Horses will get five-weeks of vacation, according to a bill passed by the City Council Wednesday.
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DNAinfo/Jim Scott

By Mariel S. Clark

DNAinfo News Editor

MANHATTAN — Some four-legged New Yorkers will get lifestyle improvements thanks to a bill passed by the City Council Wednesday.

The council's legislation would increase the fare for horse-drawn carriage rides as well as give the horses five weeks off a year, an extra vet visit and larger stables, according to media reports.

"People all over the world come to New York City with plans to take a carriage ride through Central Park," Councilwoman Karen Koslowitz told the New York Post.

"This bill ensures they can continue to do so in an environment that treats both the horses and the drivers fairly."

Mayor Michael Bloomberg is expected to sign the bill, which would raise the cost of a ride from $34 for the first 30 minutes to $50 for the first 20 minutes, the New York Times reported.

Carriage drivers were reportedly in support of the bill that also included cost-of-living increases every three years, according to NY1.

The bill, which passed 43 to 4, bans carriage rides south of 34th Street and from operating from 3 a.m. to 7 a.m., according to the Times. It also would limit the age of horses used to between 5 and 26.

Critics of horse-drawn carriages said the bill doesn't go far enough and continued to ask that the industry be banned outright, reports said.