KILLARNEY’S famous jarveys are reaching across the Atlantic to show solidarity with their colleagues in New York who are in danger of being forced out of business by the city authorities.
Mayor Bill de Blasio wants to ban the iconic horse-drawn carriages from Central Park, putting the livelihoods of close on 300 operators under threat.
He maintains that it is cruel to have horses pulling carriages and he has been lobbied extensively on the issue by powerful animal welfare groups in the city.
But horse and carriage tour operators are quick to dismiss his concerns and insist the horses are extremely well cared for with very high standards adhered to in the city stables in which they are housed.
They point to the fact that the carriages have been ferrying people through the park since 1858 and they are shocked that the city council is now working on a bill to ban them.
Campaign
One operator in the Big Apple, Meath native Colm McKeever, who has close ties with jarveys in Killarney, is leading the fight against the campaign.
“The carriages are part and parcel of the fabric of Central Park. They were there before Abraham Lincoln,” he said.
Killarney Horse and Carriage Tours, an award-winning co-operative involving 15 traditional jarveys, has pledged its full support to the New York horsemen with a pledge to do anything possible to help.
“We know what it’s like to come under pressure from government bodies following the whole issue of providing nappies for our horses,” Michael Sweetman, a third generation jarvey, told KillarneyToday.com.
“We will offer them any support we can. We can take up a petition or campaign for them if it will be of help.”
Important
Mr Sweetman, who met with Colm McKeever when he visited Killarney, said the horse-drawn carriages are as important to New York as the jaunting cars are to Killarney.
“The mayor’s proposal is ridiculous. It’s like taking the Eiffel Tower out of Paris. Central Park would be nothing without the carriages, just like Killarney would be a much duller place without the jaunting cars,” Mr Sweetman added.
A recent poll revealed that the New York public is overwhelmingly in favour of retaining the horse-drawn carriages and vehemently opposed to a proposal to introduce electric cars to help minimise job losses in the tour guide industry.
