Camp Zama

Camp Zama (キャンプ座間) is a United States Army post located in the cities of Zama and Sagamihara, in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about 40 km (25 mi) southwest of Tokyo.

Camp Zama is home to the U.S. Army Japan (USARJ)/I Corps (Forward), the U.S. Army Japan Aviation Detachment Japan "Ninjas" , the 441st Military Intelligence Brigade, the Japan Engineer District (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers), the 78th Signal Battalion and the Central Readiness Force and 4th Engineer Group of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force.

The Camp

Camp Zama is close to the Sagami River near the foothills of the Tanzawa Mountain Range, Kanagawa Prefecture. The installation falls in the Zama City limits while the two housing areas, Camp Zama and Sagamihara Family Housing Area (SFHA), are located in the adjacent Sagamihara City. Once considered rural, this area has transformed into an urban area. New housing developments and communities along with shopping centers have increased the population and made traffic extremely congested. Traveling from Tokyo and outlying U.S. military installations to Camp Zama averages from 1.5 to 3 hours depending on the time of day. However traveling from other parts of Kanagawa was made easier with the opening of the nearby Sagamihara/Aikawa Interchange which connects with the Ken-Ō Expressway in May 2012. The recommended method to travel to Camp Zama during times of peak road traffic is via the extremely reliable local public transportation train system. The closest train station to Camp Zama is the Odakyū Line's Sōbudai-mae Station.