Mayor's vision for horseless carriages in Central Park sputters
| New York
Instead of the whinny and clip-clop of horse-drawn hansom cabs in Central Park, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio prefers the ah-oo-gah ah-oo-gah of old-time cars.
The mayor was surprisingly insistent about the issue during the heady days of the fall campaign last year, when the candidate was a surprising mayoral upstart who catapulted into office and became the darling of America鈥檚 left. And even before his inauguration, Mr. de Blasio never wavered in his vow, putting it at the top of his early agenda.
鈥淲e are going to quickly and aggressively move to make horse carriages no longer a part of the landscape in New York City,鈥� he said two days before his swearing-in.
Like his tax-the-rich plan to fund universal pre-K, however, his efforts to replace the city鈥檚 iconic horse-drawn carriages with electric vintage cars has lurched, sputtered, and backfired. Some 60 percent of both men and women registered to vote in the city have cried 鈥淲hoa!鈥� to the mayor鈥檚 plans, according to a January聽.
And for the past week, his proposed hansom cab ban has been one of the hottest political issues in town.
On Thursday, the proposed hansom cab alternative, the was unveiled at the New York International Auto Show to a general chorus of neighs.
The mayor hopes most of the 300 current carriage drivers will warm up to these brass-era replicas, commissioned by the group spearheading the horse carriage ban, New Yorkers for Clean, Livable and Safe Streets (known as NYClass). The organization was part of an animal rights coalition that gave $1.3 million to de Blasio and other carriage ban advocates on the city council.
But instead of galvanizing support for the ban, the unveiling of the Horseless eCarriage prompted the city鈥檚 newspapers to urge the mayor to drop his quest.
鈥淲hile there is no lack of animal-welfare problems in the city 鈥� abused pets, feral cats, rats, Asian long-horned beetles, geese at the airports 鈥� New York鈥檚 well-treated, well-regulated carriage horses are not among them,鈥� last week.
And the New York Daily News launched a full-throated 鈥淪ave Our Horses鈥� campaign, asking readers to sign a petition urging the mayor to abandon his plans.
On Saturday, however, 50 animal rights supporters who want the horses to be put out to pasture picketed in front of the Upper West Side apartment building of Liam Neeson, who has been outspoken in his support of the carriage industry.聽Protesters held signs saying, "Liam Neeson: Stop Supporting Cruelty."聽
In March, Neeson had taken reporters and a dozen City Council members on a tour of the stables housing the carriage horses, saying the animals are well-cared for.
鈥淭his is an industry that鈥檚 been here since before Abraham Lincoln鈥檚 first inauguration,鈥� . 鈥淎 beautiful industry it is. It鈥檚 a connection with our past.鈥�
Other New York celebs, however, including Alec Baldwin, Lea Michele, and Miley Cyrus have publicly supported the ban.
鈥淟iam Neeson has abused his stature as a celebrity to promote lies among the general public,鈥� Allie Feldman, head of NYCLASS, said to Newsday聽 鈥淜eep in mind, he is the only celebrity to ever support the abusive carriage-horse industry.鈥澛�
But Neeson's advocacy helped to turn the political tide. At the start of the year, animal rights activists were giddy with anticipation. The expected ban, led by de Blasio and his liberal City Council in the media capital of New York, was considered one of the biggest potential victories in the movement鈥檚 history.
But so far, no bill has yet been introduced. The office of City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, a previous supporter of the carriage ban, has聽 when the issue would be put on the agenda.
Indeed, the heady days of the mayor鈥檚 landslide mandate seem further in the past each day, as another of his progressive changes for the city hits a snag.
鈥淚n a democracy, there's going to be differences," de Blasio said last week. "My bottom line is, it's just not humane, and we've got to do better."
