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

Sahil went on a trip with his friends. They rented a car and travelled first 90 km at a speed of 60 km/hr, next 150 km at a speed of 80 km/hr, and final 210 km at a speed of 100 km/hr. What was the average speed for the whole distance travelled by them?

  1. 92.19 km/hr

  2. 82.19 km/hr

  3. 72.19 km/hr

  4. 62.19 km/hr

  5. 52.19 km/hr
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Total distance = 90 + 150 + 210 = 450 km. Total time = (90/60) + (150/80) + (210/100) = 1.5 + 1.875 + 2.1 = 5.475 hours. Average speed = 450 / 5.475 = 82.19 km/hr.

Multiple choice

A train travelling from A to B meets with an accident after 1 hour. After the accident, it moves at four-fifths of the former speed and arrives 2 hours late. If the train had covered 80 km more before the accident, then it would have been just 1.5 hours late. Find the original speed of the train.

  1. 60 kmph

  2. 40 kmph

  3. 80 kmph

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

Let original speed be v and distance be d. Time taken = 1 + (d-v)/0.8v = 1 + 2. If 80km more covered, time = 1 + 80/v + (d-v-80)/0.8v = 1 + 80/v + 1.5. Solving the system of equations for v gives 40 kmph.

Multiple choice

A circular track has a circumference of 400 m. A and B run on the track at speeds 9 kmph and 5 kmph, respectively. If they start from a fixed point in the same direction, after what time will they be together again for the first time?

  1. 2 min

  2. 4 min

  3. 6 min

  4. 8 min

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

Relative speed = 9 - 5 = 4 kmph = 4 * (5/18) m/s = 10/9 m/s. Time to meet = Circumference / Relative speed = 400 / (10/9) = 360 seconds = 6 minutes.

Multiple choice

Bus J started travelling from terminal A towards terminal B at 7 am with a speed of 48 km/hr. At 8 am, another bus K also started travelling from terminal A towards terminal B. Bus K crossed bus J at 10 am. The distance between terminals A and B was 300 km. Another bus L started travelling from terminal B at 9 am and met bus K at 10:30 am. How far was bus J from bus L, when bus L met bus K?

  1. 12 km

  2. 18 km

  3. 24 km

  4. 36 km

  5. 48 km
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Bus J travels 48 km/hr. At 10 am, J has traveled 3 hours (144 km). Bus K travels from 8 am to 10 am (2 hours) to cover 144 km, so speed K = 72 km/hr. Bus L starts at 9 am from B (300 km away). At 10:30 am, K has traveled 2.5 hours (180 km from A). Distance between K and B is 300 - 180 = 120 km. L meets K at 10:30 am. Solving for positions at 10:30 am gives 12 km.

Multiple choice

Persons R and S started travelling towards each other at the speed of r km/h from point X and s km/h from point Y, respectively. The distance between X and Y is 10 km. R started the journey at 9 a.m. while S started the journey at 9:30 a.m. They both met at 11 a.m. at point Z. What is the ratio of r and s, if both are positive integers?

  1. 2 : 3

  2. 2 : 1

  3. 3 : 2

  4. 1 : 2

  5. Cannot be determined
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

R travels from 9:00 to 11:00 (2 hours) at r km/h. S travels from 9:30 to 11:00 (1.5 hours) at s km/h. Total distance = 2r + 1.5s = 10. 4r + 3s = 20. For positive integers, if r=1, 3s=16 (no). If r=2, 3s=12, s=4 (ratio 2:4 = 1:2). If r=3, 3s=8 (no). If r=4, 3s=4 (no). The ratio is 1:2.