Editing Iqaluit (section)

==Transportation==
{{See also|Iqaluit Public Transit|Highways in Nunavut|Crimson Route}}
Iqaluit is the smallest Canadian capital in terms of population, and the only capital that is not connected to other settlements by a highway. Located on an island remote from the Canadian highway system, Iqaluit is generally only accessible by aircraft and, subject to ice conditions, by boat.
[[File:Iqaluit airport (6869460992).jpg|thumb|left|[[Iqaluit Airport]] hosts a number of scheduled flights to [[Ottawa]], [[Montreal]], [[Rankin Inlet]], [[Kuujjuaq]], and smaller communities throughout Nunavut.]]
[[Iqaluit Airport]] is a modern facility with a runway long enough for most modern [[jet aircraft]]. A new, larger passenger terminal building north of the old terminal was completed in 2018.

[[Canadian North]] serves Iqaluit from [[Ottawa]], [[Yellowknife]], and several communities in Nunavut. Locally based airlines [[Air Nunavut]], [[Canadian Helicopters]], Nunasi Helicopters, and Unaalik Aviation provide [[air charter]]s, and Air Nunavut and [[Keewatin Air]] provide [[Medical evacuation|MEDIVAC]] / [[Air medical services|air ambulance]] service. [[Jazz Aviation]] provided daily service to Iqaluit from Ottawa in 2010 and 2011, but cancelled service due to rising fuel costs, which prevented the route from being profitable.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://micro.newswire.ca/release.cgi?rkey=1711096773&view=13213-0&Start=0&htm=0 |title=Air Canada expands its network north to Iqaluit |publisher=Micro.newswire.ca |date=28 March 2010 |access-date=2 March 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150903232025/http://micro.newswire.ca/release.cgi?rkey=1711096773&view=13213-0&Start=0&htm=0 |archive-date=3 September 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/air-canada-discontinues-iqaluit-flights-1.1125944 |title=Air Canada discontinues Iqaluit flights |publisher=CBC.ca |date=4 July 2011 |access-date=2 August 2011 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810105736/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/story/2011/07/04/air-canada-iqaluit-flights.html |archive-date=10 August 2011}}</ref>

Iqaluit shared its runway with the [[Royal Canadian Air Force]] until the [[Canadian Armed Forces]] stopped using Iqaluit as a [[Canadian NORAD Region Forward Operating Locations|Canadian NORAD Region Forward Operating Location]]. The barracks and [[McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet|CF-188]] hangars are maintained. The airport has been a centre for cold-weather testing of new aircraft, such as the [[Airbus A380]] in February 2006.

A deep sea port opened in Iqaluit in July 2023, after five years of construction.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wright |first1=Thomas |title=After decades of plans and studies, Iqaluit's deep sea port finally opens |url=https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/after-decades-of-plans-and-studies-iqaluits-deep-sea-port-finally-opens/ |access-date=28 June 2024 |work=APTN News |date=27 July 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Pelletier |first1=Jeff |title=Iqaluit's ship comes in as deepsea port opens |url=https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/iqaluits-ship-comes-in-as-deepsea-port-opens/ |access-date=28 June 2024 |date=25 July 2023}}</ref> The port features a dredged fixed dock, mooring space, a cargo laydown area, an all-tide barge ramp, and a fuel manifold.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Government of Nunavut |title=Iqaluit Port |url=https://www.gov.nu.ca/en/transportation/iqport |access-date=28 June 2024}}</ref>

Initial plans for the port included facilities for a vehicle ferry connection to [[Happy Valley-Goose Bay]], [[Newfoundland and Labrador]], however these plans were dropped due to high cost.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/high-costs-killed-iqaluit-labrador-vehicle-ferry-dream-nunavut-minister-says/ |title=High costs killed Iqaluit-Labrador vehicle ferry dream, Nunavut minister says |date=30 May 2019 |publisher=Nunatsiaq News |access-date=6 April 2020 |archive-date=5 April 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200405031549/https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/high-costs-killed-iqaluit-labrador-vehicle-ferry-dream-nunavut-minister-says/ |url-status=live}}</ref> Experienced locals also cross the [[Hudson Strait]] from the Canadian mainland when it freezes over, either on foot or by [[dog sled]] or [[snowmobile]], a distance of over {{cvt|100|km}}.
[[File:Traffic on the Road to Nowhere.JPG|thumb|Iqaluit has a local road system that does not extend far beyond the city limits. During the winter, remote areas near the city are only accessible by [[snowmobile]]s, [[dog sled]], or foot.]]
Iqaluit has a local road system only stretching from the nearby community of [[Apex, Iqaluit|Apex]] to the [[Sylvia Grinnell Territorial Park]], {{cvt|1|km}} west of town. Iqaluit has no public transportation, although there is citywide taxi service. [[Iqaluit Public Transit]] used to offer bus service in the city, but the service was cancelled due to low ridership. Motor cars are increasing in number, to the extent of causing occasional traffic jams known locally as "the rush minute". The cost of shipping automobiles and the wear-and-tear of the harsh [[Climate of the Arctic|Arctic climate]] combined with its notoriously rough roadways mean that snowmobiles remain the preferred form of personal transportation. [[All-terrain vehicle]]s are also common in most of the [[Northern Canada|Canadian Arctic]]. Snowmobiles are used to travel within the city and in the surrounding area. In winter, [[dog sled]]s are still used, but primarily for recreation. In winter, the nearby [[Qaummaarviit Territorial Park]] and the more remote [[Katannilik Territorial Park Reserve]] are only accessible by snowmobile, dog sled or foot. In the summer, both are accessible by boat. Most major roads within Iqaluit are paved with asphalt, but local and smaller roads are [[Gravel road|gravel]]. Roads do not have traffic signals, but use stop signs to control intersections.

Residents and businesses identify their locations mostly by building number, and occasionally by the name of a prominent structure. Residents know where in the city certain series of building numbers are located; numbers tend to be aggregated in blocks, so someone might say that they live in the 2600s. Around 2003, street names were developed, although there were delays in finalizing them and posting the signs. Street numbers have not been assigned, and building numbers continue to be used. Iqaluit is the only Canadian capital city not to have [[Traffic light|traffic signals]],<ref>[https://www.gov.nu.ca/sites/default/files/restricted_drivers_manual.pdf Restricted Drivers Manual] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201124181040/https://www.gov.nu.ca/sites/default/files/restricted_drivers_manual.pdf |date=24 November 2020}} page 16</ref> although some have been installed on a temporary basis.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/iqaluit-temporary-traffic-lights-1.4675443 |title=Red light! Iqaluit's first traffic lights cause social media stir |access-date=19 July 2020 |archive-date=9 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109041208/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/iqaluit-temporary-traffic-lights-1.4675443 |url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Nunatsiaq News - Nunavut Tourism - Ayaya Communications Offices.jpg|thumb|Offices for the [[Nunatsiaq News]]. Nunatsiaq News is one of two weekly newspapers that circulate in Iqaluit.]]
[[File:IqaluitHarbourView.jpg|thumb|Harbour view]]
[[File:IqaluitHarbourView2.jpg|thumb|Harbour view]]