Chūō-ku, Saitama
| Chūō-ku 中央区 | |
|---|---|
| Ward | |
 Location of Chūō-ku in Saitama | |
  Chūō-ku Location in Japan | |
| Coordinates: 35°53′1.608″N 139°37′34.1616″E / 35.88378000°N 139.626156000°ECoordinates: 35°53′1.608″N 139°37′34.1616″E / 35.88378000°N 139.626156000°E | |
| Country | Japan |
| Region | Kantō |
| Prefecture | Saitama |
| District | Saitama |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | 丸山信弘 Nobuhiro Maruyama |
| Area | |
| • Total | 8.39 km2 (3.24 sq mi) |
| Population (2012) | |
| • Total | 95,890 |
| • Density | 11,000/km2 (30,000/sq mi) |
| Time zone | Japan Standard Time (UTC+9) |
| Symbols | |
| - Flower | Rose |
| Address | 338-0002 |
| Website | |
Chūō-ku (中央区 lit. "Central ward") is one of the ten wards of Saitama City, Japan. As of June 2012, the ward has a population of 95,890.[1] It is surrounded by Sakura-ku (to the west), Minami-ku (to the south), Urawa-ku (to the east) and Ōmiya-ku (to the north) of Saitama city. It is a part of the Greater Tokyo Area and located about 20 kilometres north of central Tokyo.
Despite its name, it is not quite the administrative or the commercial centre of the city, roles which are designated to Urawa-ku and Ōmiya-ku respectively. It is rather the intersection of the sprawls from those centres.
History
On May 1, 2001 the city of Yono merged with Ōmiya and Urawa to form the new capital City of Saitama. When Saitama City in April 2003 became a city designated by government ordinance, Chūō-ku was created to cover the area of whole former Yono city and small parts of former Urawa and Ōmiya cities, specifically the area of Saitama New Urban Center west of the Utsunomiya Line.
Geography
Shape and Location
Chūō-ku is located to the west of the center of Saitama City, the capital of Saitama Prefecture. Chūō-ku is wedge-shaped with a southern tip. Measuring approximately 5.5 km in the north-south direction and approximately 3.5 km in the east-west direction, it has an area of 8.39 km2.[2] Located on the Kantō Plain, Chūō-ku has a low elevation. Its lowest point, located at Ōto-nichōme, has an elevation of 4.7 m above sea level and its highest point, located at Suzuya-yonchōme, has an elevation of 16.6 m above sea level.[3] The vast majority of rivers run north-south down the ward, consequently travelling east-west across the ward requires travelling across alternating regions of plateaus and depressions. The eastern-most of these plateaus is the Ōmiya-daichi, to the west of which lies the Kōnuma River which is at the centre of a 500-meter long depression. The Ōmiya-daichi continues to the west of this depression until it meets another depression due to the Arakawa River at the western-most point of the ward.[4]
Land Use
482.9 hectares of the ward's 839 hectares is used as a residential area and consequently the entire ward was designated a "densely inhabited district" (DID) in 2005.[3] Despite the apparent lack of farming areas, some can be seen on either side of the Kōnuma River where, on the eastern bank, the ward office, fire station and library are also located. The northern tip of the ward is part of the Saitama New Urban Center where the broad-based local government of the Kantō district and the Saitama Super Arena are located.
Climate
The average temperature between 2007 and 2011 was 15.4 °C with an average of 53 days of sun. In terms of precipitation, Chūō-ku saw an average of 1359 mm per year of precipitation between 2007 and 2011 with an average of 108 days of rain and 10 days of snow.[3]
| Climate data for Chūō-ku, Saitama | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | 3.1 (37.6) |
5.5 (41.9) |
6.9 (44.4) |
13.4 (56.1) |
17.9 (64.2) |
22.7 (72.9) |
27.2 (81) |
26.8 (80.2) |
24.4 (75.9) |
18.0 (64.4) |
12.6 (54.7) |
5.3 (41.5) |
15.32 (59.57) |
| Average precipitation mm (inches) | — | 82.5 (3.248) |
67.5 (2.657) |
44.5 (1.752) |
287.5 (11.319) |
113.0 (4.449) |
93.0 (3.661) |
229.5 (9.035) |
244.5 (9.626) |
110.5 (4.35) |
52.5 (2.067) |
56.5 (2.224) |
1,359 (53.5) |
| Source: http://www.city.saitama.jp/www/contents/1365151655919/index.html, 土地及び気象 | |||||||||||||
Transport
Rail
Chūō-ku is served by the following East Japan Railway Company stations:[5]
Yono Station and Saitama-Shintoshin Station on the Keihin-Tōhoku Line (the latter also on the Takasaki and Tōhoku Main Lines) straddle the border between Chūō-ku and other Saitama wards, but are officially located in Urawa-ku and Ōmiya-ku respectively. Ignoring these two stations, the busiest station in Chūō-ku is Minami-Yono Station with 15,901 users per day, making it the 15th busiest station in Saitama city.[6]
Buses
- Kokusaikōgyō Bus operates in large sections of the ward.[7]
- Seibu Bus operates mainly to the south of the ward.[8]
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Chuo-ku, Saitama. |
- Official website (Japanese)
References
- ↑ http://www.city.saitama.jp/www/contents/1340841569042/files/chuo1207-1.pdf
- ↑ Retrieved July 31, 2013
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 http://www.city.saitama.jp/www/contents/1365151655919/index.html, 土地及び気象
- ↑ 与野市総務部市史編さん室(1998), pages 3-5&7
- ↑ http://www.jreast.co.jp/map/index.html
- ↑ http://www.jreast.co.jp/passenger/2012_02.html
- ↑ http://5931bus.com/rosenzu/index.html
- ↑ http://www.seibubus.co.jp/timetable/dia/map/rosenzu/index.html
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