(a) No person, except as otherwise provided in subdivision (b) of this section, may bring any animal on or into any conveyance or facility unless enclosed in a container and carried in a manner which would not annoy other passengers.

(b) Subdivision (a) of this section does not apply to working dogs for law enforcement agencies, to service animals which have been trained or are being trained to aid or guide a person with a disability and are accompanying persons with disabilities, or to service animals which are being trained by a professional trainer. All service animals must be harnessed or leashed.

(c) Upon request by a police officer or other designated employee of MTABC or the authority, a trainer must display proof of affiliation with professional training school and that the animal is a licensed service animal or an animal being trained as a service animal. Upon request of a police officer or designated MTABC or authority personnel, a passenger must provide evidence that an animal claimed to be a service animal and thus exempt from the provisions of subdivision (a) of this section qualifies as such or is being trained as a service animal. Such evidence may be supplied through: the display of a service animal license issued by the New York City Department of Health, New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets or by other governmental agencies in New York or elsewhere authorized to issue such licenses, the display of an identification from a professional training school that the animal is a trained service animal, the presence of a harness or a marking on a harness, or the credible verbal assurances of the person with a disability using the service animal or animal being trained as such. For purposes of this paragraph, credible verbal assurances may include a description of one or more tasks that the animal performs or is being trained to perform for the benefit of the person with a disability.

(d) As an alternative to any of the methods described in subdivision (c) of this section for providing evidence that an animal meets the definition of service animal, persons with disabilities who use service animals who do not have a service animal license or other written documentation that the accompanying animal is a service animal may apply to the authority for a service animal identification card.

(e) Police officers or designated MTABC or authority personnel have the right to refuse admission to or eject any passenger accompanied by an animal, including a service animal, which poses a direct threat to the safety of other passengers.