climate, the contributions of the educated elite, the centers of industry and mineral extraction, the various university complexes, the massive labor force, and the highly literate and educated municipal population are all contributing factors into establishing the framework of the great and spiritual network Radio Semnan offers today." Furthermore, Radio Semnan is unique in offering broadcast time in which residents may call in and engage in direct dialogue with city representatives and officials. This provides the people as well as city officials the opportunity to address general public concerns and discuss future plans. Newspapers In addition to the numerous nationwide newspapers such as "hamshahri" and "Jomhuri ye Eslami", Semnan publishes many of its own newspapers as well as newspapers for other major cities throughout the Semnan Province. These newspapers consist of: the daily "Payam e Ostan e Semnan" (Message of the Semnan Province) the weekly "Kavir" (Salt Marsh) the weekly "Ham Nazar" (Comments) the weekly "Javane ye Emrouz" (Daily Sprout) the weekly "Shahvar" (Kingly) the bi-weekly "Payam e Shahroud" (Message of Shahroud) the monthly "Zofor" (Victory) the monthly "Chafiyye" (Keffiyeh) the monthly "Chante" (Wallet) the "Journal" of the College of Anthropology of the University of Semnan the monthly "Healthcare Newsletter" of the Semnan Center of Health The city's extensive online newspaper can be accessed at www.semnannews.com. The Islamic Republic News Agency also features a provincial news outlet dedicated to the Semnan Province. Transportation Airports and aviation The city is served by both the Semnan Municipal Airport and New Semnan Airport . Railways The city is served by the Semnan Railway Station, which features double rails and services to the major cities of Tehran (Westward) and Mashad (Eastward). In addition to services to Tehran and Mashad, there are separate railway services to the cities of Garmsar, Shahrud, Damghan, Meyami, and Sorkheh, all within the Province of Semnan. The Semnan Railway Station features modern electric rail services as well. The city is further served by the Semnan Municipal Train system which connects the major points of the city by rail. This train service resembles the light rail transit systems that serve several cities throughout the Western world. Other transportation services Semnan also offers an extensive bus route throughout the entire municipality as well as numerous public and private taxi services. Similar to most cities in Iran, Semnan has a particular taxi service referred to in Persian as "agence." This originally French word