Quantitative Aptitude

Time, Speed and Distance

2,165 Questions
All Core formulas and unit conversion 441 Boats and streams effective speed 396 Relative speed, meetings, and overtaking 375 Average speed 362 Early and late arrival 321 Proportional relationships 202 Stoppage time per hour 35 Train and stationary or moving object crossing 17 Races and dead heats 16

Time, Speed and Distance Questions

Multiple choice

In still water, a man can swim at the rate of 9 km/hr. He takes twice the time to swim opposite to the stream in comparison to the direction of the stream. What is the flow rate of the stream?

  1. 2 km/hr

  2. 3 km/hr

  3. 4 km/hr

  4. 5 km/hr

  5. 6 km/hr
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Let man speed = M = 9, stream speed = S. Downstream speed = 9+S, upstream = 9-S. Time = Distance / Speed. Time_up = 2 * Time_down -> D/(9-S) = 2 * D/(9+S). 9+S = 18 - 2S -> 3S = 9 -> S = 3 km/hr.

Multiple choice

Two trains start from points A and B and travel towards each other at speeds of 40 km/hr and 30 km/hr, respectively. By the time they meet, the first train has travelled 100 km more than the second. What is the distance between A and B?

  1. 300 km

  2. 700 km

  3. 500 km

  4. 200 km

  5. 800 km
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Let t be the time until they meet. Distance 1 = 40t, Distance 2 = 30t. 40t - 30t = 100, so 10t = 100, t = 10 hours. Total distance = 40t + 30t = 70t = 70 * 10 = 700 km.

Multiple choice

Find the time taken by Aman when he uses a boat to cover a distance of 28 km upstream. The ratio of the speed of boat in still water to the speed of stream is 9 : 3. It is also given that the same boat covers a distance of 20 km downstream in 50 minutes.

  1. 2 hours 10 minutes

  2. 2 hours 20 minutes

  3. 2 hours 15 minutes

  4. 1 hour 55 minutes

  5. 2 hours 55 minutes
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Downstream speed = 20 km / (50/60) hr = 24 km/hr. Ratio of boat (B) to stream (S) is 9:3, so B=3S. Downstream speed = B + S = 4S = 24, so S = 6 and B = 18. Upstream speed = B - S = 18 - 6 = 12 km/hr. Time = 28 / 12 = 2.33 hours = 2 hours 20 minutes.

Multiple choice

Hemant drives a car at the speed of 16 km/h, but stops for 8 minutes to take rest at the end of every 23 km. The time that he will take to cover a distance of 128 km is

  1. 8 h 40 min

  2. 9 h 20 min

  3. 6 h 40 min

  4. 8 h

  5. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Total distance = 128 km. Speed = 16 km/h. Driving time = 128 / 16 = 8 hours. He stops every 23 km. Number of stops = floor(128/23) = 5 stops. Total rest time = 5 * 8 minutes = 40 minutes. Total time = 8 hours 40 minutes.

Multiple choice

A man walks a certain distance in a certain scheduled time. If he had walked 4 km/hr faster, then he would have taken 1 hr less than the scheduled time. If he had walked 3 km/hr slower, then he would have taken 1 hr more than the scheduled time. The distance (in km) walked by the man is

  1. 145 km

  2. 155 km

  3. 168 km

  4. 147 km

  5. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Let distance be D and speed be S. D/S - D/(S+4) = 1 and D/(S-3) - D/S = 1. Solving these equations: D = S(S+4)/4 and D = S(S-3)/3. S^2+4S = 4D/S * S? No, equate: S(S+4)/4 = S(S-3)/3. 3S+12 = 4S-12. S = 24. D = 24(28)/4 = 168.

Multiple choice

Joe and his family went on a boat trip to an island, which was 20 km away from their current location, and it took them 5 hours to reach there while travelling in the upstream direction. While travelling back to the same location downstream, it took them 2 hours. What would be the speed of the boat in still water?

  1. 7 kmph

  2. 6 kmph

  3. 5 kmph

  4. 4 kmph

  5. 3 kmph
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Upstream speed = 20/5 = 4 km/hr. Downstream speed = 20/2 = 10 km/hr. Boat speed = (Downstream + Upstream) / 2 = (10 + 4) / 2 = 7 km/hr.

Multiple choice

A car covers the distance from town A to town B at a speed of 58 kmph and covers the distance from town B to town A at a speed of 52 kmph. What is the average speed of the car for the entire distance?

  1. 54.84 kmph

  2. 55.84 kmph

  3. 56 kmph

  4. 54 kmph

  5. 56.84 kmph
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The average speed for a round trip with speeds v1 and v2 is given by the formula (2 * v1 * v2) / (v1 + v2). Plugging in 58 and 52, we get (2 * 58 * 52) / (58 + 52) = 6032 / 110 = 54.8363, which rounds to 54.84 kmph.

Multiple choice

The ratio of the speed of boat in still water to the speed of stream is 13 : 7. A boat goes 24 km upstream in 60 minutes. Find the time taken by the boat to cover the distance of 21 km downstream.

  1. 15 minutes 45 seconds

  2. 16 minutes 10 seconds

  3. 18 minutes 25 seconds

  4. 20 minutes 20 seconds

  5. 22 minutes 40 seconds
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Speed ratio (boat:stream) = 13:7. Let speeds be 13x and 7x. Upstream speed = 13x - 7x = 6x. 24 km in 60 min (1 hr) means speed = 24 km/h. So 6x = 24, x = 4. Boat speed = 52 km/h, stream speed = 28 km/h. Downstream speed = 52 + 28 = 80 km/h. Time for 21 km = 21/80 hours = (21/80) * 60 minutes = 21 * 0.75 = 15.75 minutes. 0.75 minutes = 45 seconds. Total time = 15 minutes 45 seconds.

Multiple choice

A man goes downstream on a boat to some destination and returns upstream to his starting place in 4.5 hours. If the speed of the boat in still water and the speed of the stream are 9 km/h and 5 km/h, respectively, then what is the distance of the destination from the starting place?

  1. 12 km

  2. 14 km

  3. 15 km

  4. 8 km

  5. None of these
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Downstream speed = 9+5 = 14 km/h. Upstream speed = 9-5 = 4 km/h. Let distance be D. D/14 + D/4 = 4.5. (2D + 7D) / 28 = 4.5. 9D = 126. D = 14 km.