How China’s high-speed rail network became the world’s largest 

BEIJING - Up till about 2008, rail travel in China consisted of ageing railways: slow and often uncomfortable trains that plodded their way across the sweeping countryside. A journey from Beijing to Shanghai could take up to half a day.

But in the 14 years since launching its first high-speed rail (HSR) service – a Beijing to Tianjin line to coincide with the Beijing Olympics – China now boasts the world’s largest HSR network with over 40,000km of rail lines connecting all major cities. A Beijing-Shanghai trip can now be as short as four hours.