Editing Spokane, Washington (section)

===Transportation===

====City streets====
Spokane's streets use a [[grid plan]] that is oriented to the four [[cardinal direction]]s; generally, the east–west roads are designated as avenues, and the north–south roads are referred to as streets. Major east–west thoroughfares in the city include Francis, Wellesley, Mission, Sprague, and 29th Avenues. Major north–south thoroughfares include Maple–Ash, Monroe, Division, Hamilton, Greene–Market (north of I-90), and Ray–Freya (south of I-90) Streets. [[Division Street (Spokane, Washington)|Division Street]] divides the city into East and West, while [[Sprague Avenue (Spokane, Washington)|Sprague Avenue]] splits the city into North and South.<ref>{{cite web |title=MapSpokane |url=http://maps.spokanecity.org/?lyr=City%20Council%20District |publisher=City of Spokane| access-date=October 11, 2014}}</ref> Division Street is Spokane's major [[Main Street|retail corridor]]; Sprague Avenue serves the same purpose in Spokane Valley. With over 40,000 vehicles per day in [[average daily traffic]] from [[Interstate 90 (Washington)|Interstate 90]] north to the US 2–US 395 junction, North Division is Spokane's busiest corridor.<ref>{{cite web |title=City of Spokane Traffic Flow Map |publisher=City of Spokane |url=https://static.spokanecity.org/documents/streets/traffic/2012-2013-traffic-flow-map.pdf| access-date = October 12, 2014}}</ref>

Spokane's extensive [[skywalk]] system covers thirteen blocks in the downtown area and is among the largest in the United States; it is used for pedestrian travel in cold and inclement weather and retail space as well.<ref>{{cite web |title=Spotlight on one of the largest Skywalk systems in the US |url=http://www.bycitylight.com/spotlight-archive.php?article=1 |publisher=ByCityLight.com| access-date= November 2, 2014}}</ref><ref>Young et al. (1999), p. 328</ref> Despite this, the city has an average Walk Score of 49 as of 2020, indicating that most errands require a car. Its average Bike Score is 52.<ref name=WalkScore>{{cite web |url=https://www.walkscore.com/WA/Spokane |title=Spokane, WA - Walk Score |publisher=Walk Score  |access-date=September 22, 2020}}</ref>
[[File:Full Spokane City Line bus charging at SCC transit center October 2023.jpg|thumb|STA [[City Line (Spokane, Washington)|City Line]] battery electric bus charging at [[Spokane Community College Transit Center|Spokane Community College]]]]

====Mass transportation====
{{See also|Spokane Transit Authority}}
Before the influx of automobiles, Spokane's electric [[Spokane and Inland Empire Railroad|streetcar and interurban lines]] played a dominant role in moving people and goods around Spokane. Streetcars were installed as early as 1888, when they were pulled by horses.<ref>Creighton (2013), p.64</ref> Many older side streets in Spokane still have visible streetcar rails embedded in them. Streetcar service was reduced due to declining ridership beginning in 1922, and by August 1936, all lines had been abandoned or converted to motor buses.<ref>{{cite web |last=Kershner |first=Jim |title=Spokane's Streetcars |work=Essay 8080 |publisher=HistoryLink |date=January 25, 2007 |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=8080| access-date = December 7, 2014}}</ref>

Spokane has intercity rail and bus service provided by [[Amtrak]], [[Greyhound Lines|Greyhound]], [[Flixbus]] and [[Jefferson Lines]] via the [[Spokane Intermodal Center]]. The city is a stop for Amtrak's ''[[Empire Builder]]'' on its way to and from Chicago's [[Union Station (Chicago)|Union Station]] en route to [[Seattle (Amtrak station)|Seattle]] and [[Union Station (Portland)|Portland]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Amtrak Stations – Spokane, WA (SPK) |publisher=National Railroad Passenger Corporation |url=http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=am/am2Station/Station_Page&code=SPK| access-date = December 7, 2014}}</ref> Amtrak's through service to Seattle and Portland is a legacy of [[BNSF Railway]]'s old [[Spokane, Portland and Seattle Railway]] trackage.<ref name="Trains">{{cite web |last=Kelly |first=Bruce |title=Hot Spots: Spokane, Wash. |publisher=Trains |url=http://trn.trains.com/en/Railroad%20Reference/Hot%20Spots/2006/07/Spokane%20Wash.aspx| access-date = December 7, 2014}}</ref> Spokane is a major railway junction for the BNSF Railway and the [[Union Pacific Railroad]] and is the western terminus for the [[Montana Rail Link]].<ref name="Trains" />

Public transportation throughout the Spokane area is provided by the [[Spokane Transit Authority]] (STA), which operates a fleet of 164 buses. Its service area covers roughly {{convert|248|sqmi|km2}} and reaches 85 percent of the county's population.<ref>{{cite web |title=Frequently Asked Questions |publisher=Spokane Transit |url=http://www.spokanetransit.com/about-sta/view/faq-frequently-asked-questions/| access-date = December 7, 2014| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141212030906/https://www.spokanetransit.com/about-sta/view/faq-frequently-asked-questions| archive-date = December 12, 2014 |df=mdy-all}}</ref> The [[STA Plaza]] in downtown Spokane acts as the regional hub for most STA routes. As a part of the system's high performance transit network plan, STA introduced Eastern Washington's first bus rapid transit (BRT) route, [[City Line (Spokane, Washington)|City Line]], in July 2023. STA is also planning a [[Division Bus Rapid Transit|Division Street BRT]].

====Freeways and highways====
[[File:Nighttime view of I-90 in Spokane, from Sunset Hill.jpg|thumb|Overlooking Spokane from Sunset Hill]]

Interstate 90 (I-90) runs east–west from Seattle, through downtown Spokane, and eastward through Spokane Valley, Liberty Lake, and onward to Coeur d'Alene and then [[Missoula]].<ref name="StateMap">{{cite map |title=Official State Highway Map |url=http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/87105CAD-83A9-49A7-80F3-5719637C1E2D/0/FrontMapBig.pdf |publisher=Washington State Department of Transportation |year=2008 |edition=2008–2009 |scale=1:842,000 |series=Official State Highway Maps |cartography=United States Geological Survey |access-date=December 7, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110611105949/http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/87105CAD-83A9-49A7-80F3-5719637C1E2D/0/FrontMapBig.pdf |archive-date=June 11, 2011 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Although they are not limited access highways like I-90, [[US 2 (WA)|US 2]] and [[US 395 (WA)|US 395]] enter Spokane from the west via I-90 and continue north through Spokane via Division Street. The two highways share the same route until they reach "The Y", a [[Three-way junction|fork]] where US 395 continues northward to [[Deer Park, Washington|Deer Park]], [[Colville, Washington|Colville]] then onward to Canada, and US 2 branches off to the northeast, continuing to [[Mead, Washington|Mead]], [[Newport, Washington|Newport]], and [[Sandpoint, Idaho|Sandpoint]]. [[US Route 195|US 195]], also known as the Inland Empire Highway, connects to Interstate 90 west of Spokane near Latah Creek and travels south through the Palouse.<ref name="StateMap"/>

The [[Washington State Department of Transportation]] (WSDOT) is tasked with improving local highways to keep up with the region's growth and to try to prevent congestion problems that plague many larger cities. The WSDOT is constructing the [[North Spokane Corridor]]. When completed, the corridor will be a {{convert|10.5|mi|km|adj=mid|-long}} limited-access highway that will run from I-90, in the vicinity of the Thor/Freya interchange, northward through Spokane, meeting the existing US 395 just south of the Wandermere Golf Course.<ref name="Corridor">{{cite web |title=North Spokane Corridor Quick Facts |publisher=Washington State Department of Transportation |url=http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/US395/NorthSpokaneCorridor/Facts.htm| access-date = December 7, 2014| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141020180617/http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/US395/NorthSpokaneCorridor/Facts.htm| archive-date = October 20, 2014 |df=mdy-all}}</ref>

====Airports====
[[File:Spokane Intl Airport - Concourse C at Night.jpg|thumb|right|Concourse C, Spokane International Airport]]

[[Spokane International Airport]] (IATA: GEG, ICAO: KGEG) serves as the primary commercial airport for Spokane, Eastern Washington, and Northern Idaho. It is the second-largest airport in the state of Washington, and is recognized by the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] as a [[Small hub primary airport|small hub]], with service from nine passenger and five cargo airlines.<ref name="SIA">{{cite web |title=Spokane International |publisher=Washington State Department of Transportation |url=http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/7091F0ED-2C67-4507-9D4A-6E902F889C23/0/2012SpokaneInternational.pdf |access-date=October 12, 2014 |archive-date=September 3, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140903092607/http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/NR/rdonlyres/7091F0ED-2C67-4507-9D4A-6E902F889C23/0/2012SpokaneInternational.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> The {{convert|4800|acre|km2|2|abbr=on|adj = on}} airport is located {{convert|5|mi|km}} west of downtown Spokane and is approximately a 10-minute drive away. The international airport's three-letter designation is "GEG", a result and legacy of the Geiger Field days prior to 1960, when the airport was named after Army aviator Major [[Harold Geiger]] in 1941.<ref name="Airports">{{cite web |last=Arksey |first=Laura |title=Felts Field (Spokane) |work=Essay 8464 |publisher=HistoryLink |date=January 15, 2008 |url=http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=8464| access-date = December 7, 2014}}</ref>

[[Felts Field]] is a general aviation airport serving the Spokane area and is located in east Spokane along the south bank of the Spokane River. Aviation at Felts Field dates back to 1913 and the strip served as Spokane's primary airport until commercial air traffic was redirected to Geiger Field after World War II.<ref name="Airports" /> In 1927, the strip was one of the first in the western U.S. to receive official recognition as an airport by the U.S. Department of Commerce and is now named in honor of James Buell Felts, a Washington Air National Guard pilot.<ref name="Airports" />