Editing Omaha, Nebraska (section)

==Infrastructure==
{{further|List of tallest buildings in Omaha, Nebraska}}
Omaha's growth has required the constant development of new urban [[infrastructure]] that influence, allow and encourage the constant expansion of the city.

===Utilities===
Retail [[natural gas utility|natural gas]] and [[water company|water]] [[public utility|public utilities]] in Omaha are provided by the [[Metropolitan Utilities District]].<ref>[http://sites.nppd.com/aedc/fastfacts.asp?city=Omaha "Nebraska Fast Fact: Community Profile: Omaha"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120214112043/http://sites.nppd.com/aedc/fastfacts.asp?city=Omaha |date=February 14, 2012 }}, Nebraska Public Power District. Retrieved 9/25/08.</ref> Nebraska is the only public power state in the nation. All electric utilities are non-profit and customer-owned. [[Electrical power industry|Electricity]] in the city is provided by the [[Omaha Public Power District]].<ref>Ridley and Associates (1997) [http://www.neo.ne.gov/phase1/chapterone.htm "Chapter One,"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071214063344/http://www.neo.ne.gov/phase1/chapterone.htm |date=December 14, 2007 }} ''Nebraska's Electric Utility Industry: Final Report. Nebraska Legislature L.R. 455 Phase I Study.'' Retrieved 8/17/07.</ref> [[Public housing]] is governed by the [[Omaha Housing Authority]]. [[Metro Area Transit]] provides [[public transportation]]. [[CenturyLink]] and [[Cox Communications|Cox]] provide local telephone and internet services. The City of Omaha maintains two modern [[sewage treatment plant]]s.<ref>[http://www.cityofomaha.org/pw/ "City of Omaha Public Works"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120831104538/http://www.cityofomaha.org/pw/ |date=August 31, 2012 }} Retrieved August 10, 2012.</ref>

Portions of the [[Enron]] corporation began as [[Northern Natural Gas Company]] in Omaha. Northern provides three natural gas lines to Omaha. Enron formerly owned UtiliCorp United, Inc., which became [[Aquila, Inc.]] Peoples Natural Gas, a division of Aquila, Inc., serves several surrounding communities around the Omaha metropolitan area, including [[Plattsmouth, Nebraska|Plattsmouth]].<ref>[http://sites.nppd.com/aedc/fastfacts.asp?city=Plattsmouth "Nebraska Fast Fact: Community Profile: Plattsmouth"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140628160522/http://sites.nppd.com/aedc/fastfacts.asp?city=Plattsmouth |date=June 28, 2014 }}, Nebraska Public Power District. Retrieved 9/25/08.</ref>

===Health care===
There are [[Hospitals in Omaha, Nebraska|several hospitals in Omaha]]. Research hospitals include the Boys Town National Research Hospital, the [[University of Nebraska Medical Center]] and the [[Creighton University Medical Center]]. The Boys Town facility is well known for hearing-related research and treatment. The University of Nebraska Medical Center hosts the [[Eppley Institute for Research in Cancer and Allied Diseases]], a world-renowned [[cancer treatment]] facility named in honor of Omahan [[Eugene Eppley]].<ref>[http://www.unmc.edu/Eppley/history.htm "About the Institute"] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070807210149/http://www.unmc.edu/Eppley/history.htm |date=August 7, 2007 }}, [[University of Nebraska Medical Center]]. Retrieved 2/3/08.</ref><ref>[http://www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/NCI_Cancer_Bulletin_072605/page9 "Cancer Center Profile: UNMC Eppley Cancer Center."] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080509091709/http://www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/NCI_Cancer_Bulletin_072605/page9 |date=May 9, 2008 }} [[National Cancer Institute]]. Retrieved 2/3/08.</ref>

===Transportation===
{{Main|Transportation in Omaha}}
{{further|Railroads in Omaha|Trails in Omaha}}

[[File:Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge 1938 LOC 11763u.jpg|thumb|[[Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge]] toll booth in 1938]]
[[File:Interstate leaving Omaha.jpg|thumb|Interstate 480 leaving Omaha]]
[[File:Omaha-eppley.jpg|thumb|Omaha's [[Eppley Airfield]] in East Omaha]]

Omaha's central role in the history of transportation across America earned it the nickname "Gate City of the West".<ref name="Mullens, P.A. 1901 p. 24"/> Despite [[Abraham Lincoln|President Lincoln's]] decree that [[Council Bluffs, Iowa]], be the starting point for the Union Pacific Railroad, construction began from Omaha on the eastern portion of the first transcontinental railroad.<ref>Larsen, L.H. and Cottrell, B.J. (1997) ''The Gate City: A history of Omaha.'' University of Nebraska Press. p. 24.</ref> By the middle of the 20th century, nearly every major railroad served Omaha.

Today, the Omaha Rail and Commerce Historic District celebrates this connection, along with the listing of the [[Burlington Station (Omaha, Nebraska)|Burlington Train Station]] and the [[Union Station (Omaha)|Union Station]] on the National Register of Historic Places. First housed in the former [[Herndon House]], the Union Pacific Railroad's corporate headquarters have been in Omaha since the company began.<ref>Larsen, L.H., Cottrell, B.J., Dalstrom, H.A. (2007) ''Upstream Metropolis: An Urban Biography of Omaha and Council Bluffs''. University of Nebraska Press. p. 65.</ref> Their new headquarters, the [[Union Pacific Center]], opened in Downtown Omaha in 2004.

[[Amtrak]], the national passenger rail system, provides service through Omaha, with the [[California Zephyr]] serving [[Omaha station]] once daily in each direction. The [[Omaha Bus Station|intercity bus terminal]] is at 1601 Jackson St. in downtown Omaha. The terminal also service to [[Jefferson Lines]], [[Burlington Trailways]], and [[Express Arrow]]. [[Metro Area Transit|Metro Transit]], previously known as Metro Area Transit, is the [[mass transportation|local bus system]].

Omaha's position as a transportation center was finalized with the 1872 opening of the [[Union Pacific Missouri River Bridge]] that linked the transcontinental railroad to the railroads terminating in Council Bluffs.<ref>Larsen, L.H., Cottrell, B.J., Dalstrom, H.A. (2007) ''Upstream Metropolis: An Urban Biography of Omaha and Council Bluffs''. University of Nebraska Press. p. 101.</ref> In 1888, the first road bridge, the [[Ak-Sar-Ben Bridge|Douglas Street Bridge]], opened. In the 1890s, the [[Illinois Central]] drawbridge opened as the largest bridge of its type in the world. Omaha's Missouri River road bridges are now entering their second generation, including the [[Works Progress Administration]]-financed [[South Omaha Bridge]], now called Veteran's Memorial Bridge, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 2006, Omaha and Council Bluffs announced joint plans to build the [[Missouri River Pedestrian Bridge]], which opened in 2008.<ref>[http://www.cbparksandrec.org/documents/BOB-KERREY-PEDESTRIAN-BRIDGE-FACTS---revised.pdf "Bob Kerrey Pedestrian Bridge Facts"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090206153244/http://www.cbparksandrec.org/documents/BOB-KERREY-PEDESTRIAN-BRIDGE-FACTS---revised.pdf |date=February 6, 2009 }}, City of Council Bluffs, Iowa Parks and Recreation Department. Retrieved 12/8/08.</ref>

The primary mode of transportation in Omaha is by automobile, with [[Interstate 80 in Nebraska|I-80]], [[Interstate 480 (Iowa-Nebraska)|I-480]], [[Interstate 680 (Iowa-Nebraska)|I-680]], [[Interstate 29|I-29]], and [[U.S. Route 75]] (JFK Freeway and North Freeway) providing [[freeway]] service across the metropolitan area.<ref>Cambridge Systems, Inc. (2005) ''[http://www.nlc.state.ne.us/epubs/R6000/B152-2005.pdf "Nebraska Long-Range Transportation Plan Summary of Existing and Future Conditions and Transportation System] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081001154232/http://www.nlc.state.ne.us/epubs/R6000/B152-2005.pdf |date=October 1, 2008 }}.'' Nebraska Department of Roads. p. ES-5. Retrieved 9/25/08.</ref> The expressway along West Dodge Road ([[U.S. Route 6]] and [[Nebraska Link 28B]]) and [[U.S. Route 275]] has been upgraded to freeway standards from I-680 to [[Fremont, Nebraska|Fremont]]. City-owned [[Metro Area Transit|Metro Transit]], formerly MAT Metro Area Transit, provides public bus service to hundreds of locations throughout the Metro.

A 2017 study by [[Walk Score]] ranked Omaha 26th most walkable of fifty largest U.S. cities.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.walkscore.com/NE/Omaha |title=2017 City & Neighborhood Ranking |publisher=Walk Score |year=2017 |access-date=September 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190911064007/https://www.walkscore.com/NE/Omaha |archive-date=September 11, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> Of the top 50 most walkable cities only one, Omaha, Nebraska, saw its [[Walk Score]] decline, and it only decreased 0.3 points from last year.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.blog.walkscore.com/2017/05/these-are-the-10-most-walkable-cities-of-2017/ |title=These Are the 10 Most Walkable Cities of 2017 |publisher=Walk Score |year=2017 |access-date=September 11, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190122202453/http://blog.walkscore.com/2017/05/these-are-the-10-most-walkable-cities-of-2017/ |archive-date=January 22, 2019 |url-status=dead}}</ref> There is an extensive [[Trails in Omaha, Nebraska|trail system]] throughout the city for walkers, runners, bicyclists, and other pedestrian modes of transportation.

Omaha is laid out on a [[grid plan]], with 12 blocks to the mile with a north-to-south [[house numbering]] system.<ref>Wishart, D.J. (2004) ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=y4AetkIcOlQC&pg=PA100 Encyclopedia of the Great Plains] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160115034611/https://books.google.com/books?id=y4AetkIcOlQC&pg=PA100&dq= |date=January 15, 2016 }}''. University of Nebraska Press. p. 100.</ref> Omaha is the location of a [[Boulevards in Omaha|historic boulevard system]] designed by [[H.W.S. Cleveland]] who sought to combine the beauty of parks with the pleasure of driving cars.<ref>Larsen, L. and Cottrell, B. (1997) ''The Gate City: A History of Omaha.'' University of Nebraska Press. p. 131.</ref> The historic [[Florence Boulevard|Florence]] and Fontenelle Boulevards, as well as the modern [[Sorenson Parkway]], are important elements in this system.<ref>Larsen, L.H. and Cottrell, B.J. (1997) ''The Gate City: A history of Omaha.'' University of Nebraska Press. p. 131.</ref> The City of Omaha has proposed the [[Omaha Streetcar]] through the city's urban core, with proposed extensions to [[Council Bluffs, Iowa]], [[Eppley Airfield]], [[North Omaha]], [[West Omaha]], and [[Bellevue, Nebraska]].<ref name="GaWC">{{Cite web |title=GaWC - Data Set 11 |url=https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/datasets/da11_2.html |access-date=December 28, 2021 |website=Lboro.ac.uk |archive-date=December 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211228062404/https://www.lboro.ac.uk/gawc/datasets/da11_2.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Eppley Airfield]], Omaha's airport, serves the region with over 5 million passengers in 2018.<ref>[http://www.eppleyairfield.com/sf/default.htm "Statistics and facts"] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080924040127/http://www.eppleyairfield.com/sf/default.htm |date=September 24, 2008 }}, Eppley Airfield official website. Retrieved 9/26/08.</ref> [[United Airlines]], [[Southwest Airlines]], [[Delta Air Lines]], [[American Airlines]], [[Alaska Airlines]], [[Allegiant Air]], [[Frontier Airlines]], and [[Sun Country Airlines]] serve the airport with direct and connecting service. As of 2018, the airport has non-stop service to 34 destinations. [[General aviation]] airports that serve the area include the Millard Municipal Airport, [[North Omaha Airport]] and the [[Council Bluffs Airport]]. Offutt Air Force Base continues to serve as a military airbase; it is at the southern edge of Bellevue, which in turn lies immediately south of Omaha.