Why the US can't have nice things

"The train, to its credit, since it was near the terminus, was on time."

Had a good chuckle on this one, because with that particular line that statement is dead-on.

"By a little after six I was standing in Port Authority (there are no seats in Port Authority, which is another story) waiting for my bus home."

As someone who uses the terminal everyday, that's just not true. There may not be any where the author was waiting, or may have liked, but there are seats. I don't know if the intent was to paint a glum picture, or just wasn't specific about the fact.

Just like the train the author mentioned, the Terminal is a hotel for the homeless, some levels worse than others.

The place is falling apart. Pieces of walls and ceilings missing.

As far as actual transportation, nearly all buses from the Terminal use that tunnel. There is no dedicated bus lanes through and past the Lincoln Tunnel except during the rush hours. They are all caught in the same logjam on both sides of the tunnel. Like everything else public transportation in NYC, it's not given enough priority. Perhaps because not enough of the upper classes use it.

"with a wealthy downtown professional class that relies on inexpensive labor with long commutes (without the resources to drive) who work early/late shifts."

Much of the labor except for those fortunate enough to afford closer neighborhoods have to endure the long commutes.

I lived in the mentioned Howard Beach until my 30s, and just getting to the first station of Manhattan by subway was an hour.

Belle Harbor at one time had a large number of police and firemen. That's an additional half hour (at the least, depending on train connections).

An entire section of North East Queens is a "transportation desert" that has poor bus service at best. Those buses are often stuck in traffic with those who are able to drive. There are parts of Southern Brooklyn and Queens as well. Forget about Staten Island. If relying on public transportation, it can take longer to get from one end of NYC to another than a flight from JFK to Florida.

"A functional public transit system that’s safe, clean, and effective, is a fundamental and essential nice thing. Especially for the US, where our larger cities are basically two tiered, with a wealthy downtown professional class that relies on inexpensive labor with long commutes (without the resources to drive) who work early/late shifts."

This is horrible. HORRIBLE.