Transit officials announced a plan to address the issue of homeless people on subway.

After days of public squabbling over the problem of homeless people taking shelter on New York City’s subway during the pandemic, transit officials announced new rules meant to address the issue on Wednesday.

Riders will not be allowed to remain in a station for more than an hour, and large wheeled carts, like shopping or grocery carts, have been banned from the system, officials said.

As long as the public health emergency continues, riders will also not be allowed to remain on a train or platform after an announcement that a train is being taken out of service.

“I want to be clear the status quo has been completely unacceptable,” said Sarah Feinberg, the interim president of New York City Transit, which operates the subway and buses. “It’s my job to make sure everyone who rides our system feels safe and secure and that our work force feels safe and secure.”

With the subway carrying less than 10 percent of its usual riders and running fewer trains, the number of homeless people who are effectively living on the subway has come into sharper focus in the past two months.

Pictures of homeless people on the subway have circulated on social media and in the media, stoking fears about hygiene and safety on the trains in the midst of the pandemic.