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Riding on Public Roads |
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Agricultural
Protection Acts |
This segment collects statutes and administrative regulations that deal with riding or driving horses on public roads. Public roads include the full public right of way from fence to fence, including ditches and shoulders--not just the paved or graveled portion on which motor vehicles travel. Most of the states that have statutes or regulations dealing with this subject have only one or two--probably left over from the time when public roads were shared by horses and motor vehicles much more than they are today. Only one state--New York--appears to have a more or less comprehensive set of rules of the road for horses ridden or horse-driven vehicles. If you are planning a trail ride that uses or crosses public roads or just a pleasure ride out on a country road, it would be worth knowing whether your state has any special laws that deal with that experience.
(Scroll
down to view state statutes.)
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Law Cases for Horsemen |
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A very common provision requires motorists to exercise special care when near horses to avoid spooking them, sometimes even to the point of coming to a complete stop if necessary. Several states require that persons riding or driving horses on public roads must follow all of the rules of the road that govern motor vehicles that feasibly can be obeyed. Provisions requiring illumination or reflection for horses ridden or driven between sundown and dawn are quite common. Often these provisions go into great detail specifying the requirements for the illumination or reflection. At least one state prohibits riding horses at all at night on a public road. Several states require that horse-drawn vehicles must display a special slow moving vehicle sign. A few states require that horses pulling snow sleighs must be equipped with bells on their harnesses. Several states prohibit riding or
driving horses on the right of way of a
limited access highway, such as an Interstate Highway. One
state--Louisiana--prohibits
riding a horse on any asphalt road. There are a number of states
that
prohibit riding horses on sidewalks built by adjoining property
owners.
Several states prohibit riding a horse at a faster pace than a walk
over bridges
or certain bridges. A number of states prohibit horse racing or
speed
testing on public roads. One state prohibits recklessly riding a
horse on
a public road. Kentucky prohibits riding a horse on a public
levee. Several states, including California, authorize local communities to establish side or bridle paths for use by horses as an alternative to using the public road right of way. This page was initially posted
on March 10, 2002.
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Alabama
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Indiana [none found]
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Nebraska
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South Carolina [none found]
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