Horse-drawn carriages could soon be seen on the streets of Darlington once more.

The Darlington Independent Taxi Traders Organisation (Ditto) wants to give the town an extra tourist attraction by introducing up to three horse-drawn vehicles as Hackney carriages and private hire vehicles.

The cabinet of Darlington Borough Council has said it supports the proposal in principle.

The scheme will now go before the local authority's ratification committee meeting next Tuesday.

Council cabinet members said at a recent meeting that they supported the idea in principle, because it would benefit tourism in the town.

The application had given licensing officers a dilemma, because the last horse-drawn carriage to be given a licence plate was in 1904.

The cabinet heard that a number of issues would have to be addressed before the service could be introduced.

These included ensuring the welfare of the horses, making sure drivers were properly trained, and providing stands for the vehicles.

The traders have proposed creating stands at Feethams, Horsemarket, High Northgate and Borough Road, near Darlington Civic Theatre.

But the council is unhappy about siting stands at all four locations, because of the amount of traffic already there.

It believes a section of Houndgate next to the fountain would be the best option, although the taxi group says that would not be commercially viable, because it is in a quiet back street.

It was agreed at the meeting that there should be more discussions about locations and funding for the venture