New York City officials are close to a deal that would save Central Park's horse-drawn carriages from a threatened ban.

When Mayor Bill de Blasio was sworn in two years ago, he pledged to end the popular carriage rides through the park right away, calling it inhumane to keep horses in loud, car-clogged Manhattan.

But now his administration is negotiating with a carriage drivers' union a compromise deal that would keep the horses trotting.