After considering a number of options to remove horse-drawn carriages from San Antonio’s busy downtown streets, members of the City Council appear ready to allow carriages, but they’re holding firm on the idea that the horses must go.

Members of the council’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted unanimously Monday to direct city staff to craft a formal proposal for phasing out the permitting of horse-drawn carriages in as little as a year’s time.

As part of that direction, they’re asking staff to bring back specifics on how they can help the existing carriage drivers transition to horseless, electric carriages that are currently operating in some other cities.

“What I’ve heard from my constituency is that it is time to phase out and ban the use of horse-drawn carriages,” said Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez (D2), who authored the initial proposal nearly two years ago.

“I know that with change comes great challenges, but we also have a great opportunity to facilitate something new, special and memorable in our city that both relieves traffic congestion and creates a special experience that everyone, both local families and tourists, can enjoy,” he said.

City staff is expected to bring the proposal to the council by the end of October, and include options for phasing out the current permits over the course of one, two or three years.

It’s unclear who exactly would be making the switch to electric carriages.

Stephanie Garcia, owner of Yellow Rose and H.R.H. Carriage Company, said she traveled to the Dominican Republic, Guadalajara and Florida to investigate the vehicles, and believed they were still a long way from making a suitable substitute to draft horses.

But Assistant City Manager Alex Lopez said the city was most concerned about protecting the jobs of the horse-drawn carriage drivers, who serve as independent contractors to companies like Garcia’s.

“What are the experiences, the qualifications of the people that do this type of work? First and foremost, they like horses,” Lopez told the council committee.

A culture war

Monday’s decision comes as leaders from the horse-drawn carriage industry have repeatedly complained that members of the City Council have no understanding of the business they’re trying to regulate.

After providing evidence that the horses’ welfare is already highly regulated by the city, they declared the issue a culture war between urban, animal rights activists and the “agrotourism” industry, packing the council meetings with speakers like a blacksmith and a large animal veterinarian to help drive home their point.

Opponents of the horse-drawn carriages, on the other hand, say the community has been asking for this change for decades, out of both concern for animal welfare and downtown traffic congestion.

In the city’s own research on the issue, members of the public had strong opinions, but were deeply divided.

A city survey about horse-drawn carriages drew a record 50,700 responses — more than any other issue city staff could recall polling — with residents split almost evenly between those who said the horses should stay and those who thought they should be retired.

Nevertheless, at the end of Monday’s meeting, Councilman John Courage (D9), who chairs the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, said he’d heard enough.

“It’s pretty apparent from what we heard from citizens and the gist of what I’m hearing from the committee members that we want to move forward on a transition plan,” Courage said.