• The metro area spans the Missouri/Kansas border. Kansas City, Mo., is the original namesake for the entire area. Kansas City, Kan., is the smaller city to the west. Johnson County, Kan., is home to upscale suburban communities with a secondary center of business called Corporate Woods.
• The Missouri River splits the metropolitan area east to west. Kansas City, Mo., spans the river, and the communities north of the river are collectively referred to as “the Northland.”
• The numbered streets on the Missouri side run east to west, beginning downtown at the Missouri River. Numbered streets in KCK run north to south beginning at the state line.
• Addresses on numbered streets south of the river in KCMO will be indicated as “East” or “West” with Main Street as the dividing line. Addresses on numbered streets in the Northland will be proceeded by “Northeast” or “Northwest.” North Oak Trafficway is the dividing line.

More on the State Line:
Kansas City is unique in the nation because a state line bisects the metropolitan area. It runs from a point just west of downtown on the Missouri River south through the center of the metro area. From downtown to the north, the Missouri River defines the states’ shared boundary.

• State Line Road follows the line north and south through the most populated areas of the region.
• Kansas City, Mo., is the namesake and largest city, founded in 1850 as the City of Kansas (not too confusing, huh?)
• Kansas City, Kan., known as KCK locally, is a smaller city on the western side of the line. Traditionally an industrial center, today KCK has burgeoning entertainment venues on its west side.
• Affluent Johnson County, Kan., came of age in the 1950s and ‘60s, boasting some of the most attractive neighborhoods and communities in the Midwest.
• Telephone numbers in Missouri use the 816 area code. Kansas numbers use the 913 area code. You must use the area codes when dialing across the state line, but there’s no need to dial “1” first and the calls are not long-distance.
• Other area codes in the metro include 785 for Lawrence and Topeka, Kan. To call St. Joseph, Mo., the area code is 816 but is considered a long distance call from Kansas City.