The Chicago City Council has voted 46-4 to prohibit horse-drawn carriages starting January 1, 2021, the Chicago Tribune reported over the weekend.
There are currently 10 existing carriage licenses in Chicago, none of which will be renewed when they expire at the end of this year. The carriages take tourists on rides in the downtown area around the city's Loop, Millennium Park, and Buckingham Fountain.
Animal rights activists lauded the city council's decision, with PETA President Ingrid Newkirk calling it "a banner day for overworked horses in Chicago, who will no longer be forced to pound the pavement through extreme heat, thunderstorms, or blizzards and who are often deprived of even a drink of water, as the Chicago Alliance for Animals has documented for over three years," ABC News reported.
Chicago Horse and Carriage owner Larry Ortega rejected those arguments, stating that "Even though there are city, state and federal laws clearly stating what is animal cruelty, there has never been one horse driver or owner arrested operating on the city streets of Chicago.''
Chicago follows in the footsteps of several other cities nationwide in banning horse-drawn carriages, according to the Tribune.