New York State Law

Vehicle and Traffic Law

Consolidated Laws of New York's VTL code

Article 34B - NY Vehicle and Traffic Law

RIDING HORSES

Section Description
1260 Effect of regulations.
1261 Traffic laws apply to persons riding or leading horses.
1262 Riding on roadways, shoulders and horse paths.
1263 Carrying articles.
1264 Ban on night riding.
1265 Wearing of helmets.
S 1260. Effect of regulations.  (a)  The parent of any child and the
  guardian of any ward shall not authorize or knowingly  permit  any  such
  child or ward to violate any of the provisions of this article.
    (b)  These  regulations  applicable  to  horses shall apply whenever a
  horse is ridden or led upon any highway and upon private roads  open  to
  public motor vehicle traffic.

S 1261. Traffic laws apply to persons riding or leading horses. Every
  person riding or leading a horse upon a roadway  shall  be  granted  all
  rights  and  shall be subject to all the duties applicable to the driver
  of a vehicle by this title, except as to  special  regulations  in  this
  article  and  except as to those provisions of this title which by their
  nature can have no application.

S 1262. Riding on roadways, shoulders and horse paths. (a) Upon all
  roadways, horses shall be ridden or led either near the right hand  curb
  or  edge  of  the  roadway or upon a usable right-hand shoulder, lane or
  path in such a manner as to prevent undue interference with the flow  of
  traffic.
    (b) Persons riding or leading horses upon a roadway shall do so single
  file.
    (c)  Any  person riding or leading a horse who is entering the roadway
  from a private road, driveway, alley or over  a  curb  shall  bring  the
  horse to a full stop before entering the roadway.

 S 1263. Carrying  articles.  No person riding or leading a horse shall
  carry any package, bundle, or article which prevents  such  person  from
  keeping at least one hand upon the reins.

S 1264. Ban on night riding. No person shall ride or lead a horse upon
  a  roadway during the period from one-half hour after sunset to one-half
  hour before sunrise.  The provisions of this section shall not apply  to
  horse-drawn  carriages  or  carts  or police officers, peace officers or
  park rangers mounted on horseback.

S  1265. Wearing of helmets. 1. No person less than fourteen years of
  age shall ride a horse unless such person is wearing a helmet meeting or
  exceeding ASTM F1163 (Safety Equipment Institute  certified)  Equestrian
  Standard.  For purposes of this section, "certified" shall mean that the
  helmet's manufacturer agrees to the rules and  provisions  of  a  system
  that  includes  independent testing and quality control audits, and that
  each helmet manufactured by such manufacturer is permanently marked with
  the certifying body's registered mark or logo before such helmet is sold
  or offered for sale. For the purposes of this section, wearing a  helmet
  means  having  a  helmet  fastened  securely  upon  the  head  using the
  manufacturer's fitting guidelines for the particular model used.
    2. Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall pay  a
  civil  fine  not  to  exceed  fifty dollars. A police officer shall only
  issue a summons for a violation of this section by a  person  less  than
  fourteen  years  of  age to the parent or guardian of such person if the
  violation by such person occurs in the presence of such person's  parent
  or  guardian  and where such parent or guardian is eighteen years of age
  or more. Such summons shall only be issued to such parent  or  guardian,
  and shall not be issued to the person less than fourteen years of age.
    3.  (a)  The  court  shall waive any civil fine for which a person who
  violates the provisions of this section would be liable if  such  person
  supplies the court with proof that between the date of violation and the
  appearance  date  for  such  violation such person purchased or rented a
  helmet.
    (b) The court may waive any civil fine for which a person who violates
  the provisions of the section would be liable if the  court  finds  that
  due to reasons of economic hardship such person was unable to purchase a
  helmet.
    4.  The  failure  of  any person to comply with the provisions of this
  section shall not constitute contributory negligence  or  assumption  of
  risk,  and shall not in any way bar, preclude or foreclose an action for
  personal injury or wrongful death by or on behalf of such person, nor in
  any way diminish or reduce the damages recoverable in any such action.

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Vehicle and Traffic Law - Table of Contents

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