Some of Donald E. Yates’ fondest memories are of riding the bus around Queens in his youth. While he loved the trips through different neighborhoods, he was most enamored with the bus driver — his father, who gave him snacks and sometimes took him bowling after a shift. The elder Yates, also named Donald, was a single dad who raised his son on an MTA salary. He was one of thousands of Black New Yorkers who in recent decades carved a path to the middle class through the reliable pay and pension benefits offered to transit workers.