New transport minister Takeshi Maeda says he wants to bring back the Housing Eco-point incentive system to achieve low-carbon, sustainable cities in the quake- and tsunami-hit Tohoku region.

During an interview with The Japan Times and other media organizations Thursday, Maeda said he wants not only to bring back the Eco-point system for housing, which ended in July, but also to expand the program to turn Tohoku into a model area for ecological cities.

"Limited to Tohoku's reconstruction, I want to (bring back) and expand the Housing Eco-point incentive system," said Maeda, who is serving as a Cabinet minister for the first time.