The Shinkansen Network was not built in a day. Its story begins in the 1950s, when Japan's rapid economic recovery post-World War II put a strain on the old Imperial-era railway network.

Japan’s sleek Shinkansen bullet trains zoomed onto the railway scene in the 1960s, shrinking travel times and inspiring a global revolution in high-speed rail travel that continues to this day.

The Shinkansen network has expanded steadily since the 320-mile Tokaido line, linking Tokyo and Shin-Osaka was completed in 1964. Trains run at up to 200 mph (about 322 kph) ...

By Ben Jones, CNN (CNN) — Sixty years ago, early in the morning of October 1, 1964, a sleek blue and white train slid effortlessly across the urban sprawl of Tokyo, its elevated tracks carrying ...