When I lived in NYC I sometimes had to take the bus downtown from 86th street due to interruptions in subway traffic (which sometimes happened). I remember that

When I lived in NYC I sometimes had to take the bus downtown from 86th street due to interruptions in subway traffic (which sometimes happened). I remember that during rush hour the buses would advance at a crawling speed there, maybe making three blocks every 5 minutes, which almost made it faster to walk. So I think the big advantage of the subway system is that it is much faster in general. In less densely populated areas of New York the buses are a good (and necessary) alternative to the subway system since -as the author points out- the density of bus stops is much higher.