I would counter that the "modern" Penn Station (at least prior to the recent projects) is worse at that "fast and safely" objective. It's much harder to navigate a maze of tunnels than to navigate a large, open station headhouse with far fewer obstacles between you and the track or exit you're trying to reach.

With the new Moynihan Train Hall, built in the same style as the original Penn Station, I can simply enter from the street and walk in a straight line to the escalator down to a specific track. No more maze of tunnels (getting to the subway is another matter).