In San Antonio, the clatter of horse-drawn carriages has been a familiar sound, but their future is now at a crux. As the city contemplates whether to ban these carriages, a public survey has quickly become a pivotal piece in the debate. With responses surpassing 47,000, the surge of interest in this issue has dwarfed previous city surveys, including one concerning budget priorities. According to KSAT, the survey's results are expected to inform a City Council discussion scheduled for August 19.
San Antonio's City Council is currently weighing several options, which include transitioning to electric carriages, altering hours of operation, and moving routes outside of downtown or completely maintaining the status quo. Amidst calls for a total ban on horse-drawn carriages by figures such as District 2 Councilman Jalen McKee-Rodriguez, there's hope expressed for a just transition and exploration of alternative carriage operations. "My position has always been that we should have a total ban of horse-drawn carriages in San Antonio," McKee-Rodriguez told KENS 5.
While the survey remains open for public input, concerns have been raised by local carriage company owners over the potential bias and validity of the survey. Stephanie Garcia, who owns multiple carriage companies, pointed to the ease of manipulating survey results and the involvement of outside influencers in swaying public opinion. In a statement to KSAT, Garcia expressed concern about the integrity of the survey process and its susceptibility to repeat submissions.
That skepticism might be further fueled by city officials' acknowledgement that the survey isn't designed to absolutely represent a statistically valid population sample. Despite the city's efforts to track IP addresses to mitigate the issue of multiple submissions, the debate seems to only intensify. Councilwoman Phyllis Viagran, who originally co-sponsored a request for a carriage ban, has since expressed openness to keeping carriages operating through a compromise. "This really should be going to the planning committee or more B-sessions before you have an answer," Viagran told KSAT.
