A possible solution to cosmological age and redshift-distance difficulties has recently been proposed by applying the appropriate conformally flat spacetime (CFS) coordinates to the standard solution of the field equations in a standard dust model closed universe. Here it is shown that CFS time correctly measures the true age of the universe, thus answering a major theoretical objection to the proposal. It is also shown that the CFS interpretation leads to a strong Copernican principle and is in all other respects wholly self-consistent. The deceleration parameter q0 is related to t0, the present age of the universe divided by L, the scale length of its curvature (an absolute constant). The values of q0 and L are approximately and 9.2 × 109 yr, respectively. It is shown that the universe started everywhere simultaneously, with no recession velocity until the effects of its closed topology became significant. Conclusions to the contrary in standard theory (the big bang) stem from a different definition of recession velocity. The theoretical present cosmological mass density is quantified as 4.4 × 10-27 kg m-3 approximately, thus greatly reducing, in a closed universe, the observational requirement to find hidden mass. It is also shown that the prediction of standard theory, for a closed universe, of collapse toward a big crunch termination, will not in fact take place.