is a large residential development, straddling the municipalities of Hachiōji, Tama, Inagi and Machida cities, in Tokyo, Japan. It was designed as a new town in 1965. It is approximately long stretching east-west, and between and wide, located in an expanse of hills known as Tama Hills about west of the center of the special wards of Tokyo. It currently has a population of about 200,000, making it the largest housing development in Japan. History During the Japanese post-war economic miracle, a rapid influx of population into Tokyo led land prices to skyrocket, causing many to settle on the cheaper outskirts of the city, leading to an unplanned, rapid urban sprawl. It was feared that, left to its own devices, the uncontrolled expansion of built-up areas would lead to poorly planned communities with insufficient infrastructure to support the population and with poor access to amenities and transport. Tama New Town was planned in 1965 to attempt to ease this pressure by providing hundreds of thousands with housing in a planned, pleasant urban environment. The planning and development was carried out jointly by The Housing and Urban Development Corporation, Tokyo Metropolitan Housing Supply Corporation and Tokyo Metropolitan Government. The original planned population was 342,200, and the designated area was 2,892.1 hectares. Construction began the following year and the first phase opened in 1971. Construction continued in phases for the next few decades. Urban design and facilities It is divided into 21 neighborhoods, each with about 3000 to 5000 houses and apartments, each with two elementary schools and one junior high school as well as a neighborhood center with shops, kōban, post office, clinics and the like. Several neighborhoods form one district, each of which are centered on a commuter rail station. Tama New Town is not a municipality in itself; instead, it straddles the pre-existing boundaries of Tama, Hachiōji, Inagi and Machida cities, and each area is administered by its respective municipal authorities, all of which come under the jurisdiction of Tokyo Metropolis. Tama Center The area surrounding the Tama Center Station complex, in the municipality of Tama, is the designated center of Tama New Town. The area is separated into business, commercial and leisure zones. Tama Center Station itself is serviced by the Tama Toshi Monorail Line, as well as Keio Sagamihara and Odakyu Tama Lines which links it to Shinjuku Station in central Tokyo. The station complex also includes