TRAFFIC TRAUMA, TIGHT TEMPORARY DIGS
Koizumi a harried commuter?
The Japan Times: Nov. 26, 2002
Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi is dealing with less space and more traffic jams as he settles into a temporary residence before his new state-of-the-art official residence is completed.
...now Koizumi must travel some 6 km by car to the office -- and he, like many Tokyoites, often gets stuck in traffic.
...
Koizumi also has a smaller living space, with the current house measuring less than 200 sq. meters [2,153 sq/ft]. The old residence was about 240 sq. meters [2,583 sq/ft].
For comparison, the average American home has 1,732 square feet [161 sq. meters] and the President's Butthead personal living space in The White House is 6,700 sq/ft (622 sq. meters). For Japanese comparison, the average commute R/T is 180 minutes.
Walk the plank at the new, vacant Official Residence at:
http://www.kantei.go.jp/jp/vt/main/01/photo-ousetu01.htmlhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-pacific/1943359.stm