Stars join anti-horse carriage effort

NEW YORK, July 7 (UPI) -- Several U.S. celebrities and animal rights activists say they're backing the effort to ban horse-drawn carriages from streets around New York's Central Park.

Actor Alec Baldwin, pop singer Pink and rock-and-roll singer Chrissie Hynde agree the carriages contribute to the mistreatment of animals and cause a safety risk for New York residents, the New York Post reported Monday.

Some critics say they only want to find ways to better the industry, while others believe it needs to be completely eliminated.

"My first inclination was to try to find a way to do a better job. But I (now see) that ... to make a profit, there's no way for them to treat the horses properly," Brooklyn Councilman Tony Avella said.