Time, Speed & Distance Questions with Solutions

23 questions14 easy8 medium1 hard

Time, speed and distance questions are built on one relationship: distance = speed x time. The topic covers average speed, relative speed of objects moving in the same or opposite directions, problems on trains crossing poles, platforms and other trains, boats and streams, and races. Two shortcuts solve a large share of these questions. To convert km/h to m/s, multiply by 5/18. When equal distances are covered at speeds a and b, the average speed is 2ab/(a + b), not the simple average. For trains, remember that the distance covered while crossing includes the length of the train itself. Ratio reasoning also helps: at a constant distance, time is inversely proportional to speed. Practise the questions below on trains, boats, relative speed and average speed, each with a step-by-step solution.

All Questions Easy Medium Hard

Q1.
Two trains, A and B, start simultaneously from two stations $300 k m$ apart. Train A travels at $60 k m / h$ , and Train B travels at $90 k m / h$ . If a bird starts flying from Train A towards Train B at $120 k m / h$ and immediately turns back upon reaching Train B, continuing this until the trains meet, what total distance does the bird cover?
A. $360 k m$ B. $300 k m$ C. $240 k m$ D. $450 k m$
mediumAsked in MAH MCA CET 2025View solution ›
Q2.
A car covers 15 km, 20 km, 30 km and 12 km at speeds of 20 km/hr, 30 km/hr, 40 km/hr and 30 km/hr respectively The average speed of the car for the total journey is:
A. 25 km/hrB. 27 km/hrC. 30 km/hrD. 40 km/hr
mediumAsked in MAH MCA CET 2024View solution ›
Q3.
Two cars travel from city A to city B at speeds of 42 km/hr and 60 km/hr respectively. If one car takes 2 hours lesser time than the other car for the journey, then the distance between city A and city B is?
A. 336 kmB. 280 kmC. 420 kmD. 224 km
mediumAsked in MAH MCA CET 2024View solution ›
Q4.
Karan and Arjun run a 100 metres race, where Karan beats Arjun by 10 metres. To do a favour to Arjun, Karan starts 10 metres behind the starting line in a second 100 metre race. They both run at their earlier speeds. Which of the following is true in connection with the second race?
A. Karan and Arjun reach the finishing line simultaneouslyB. Arjun beats Karan by 1 metreC. Arjun beats Karan by 11 metresD. Karan beats Arjun by 1 metre
mediumAsked in NIMCET 2013View solution ›
Q5.
A motorboat going downstream passes a raft at point A. Exactly one hour later it turns back, and while coming upstream it passes the same raft at point B, 6 km from point A. What is the speed of the water current in km/hr?
A. 2.0B. 3.0C. 4.0D. 6.0
mediumAsked in NIMCET 2009View solution ›
Q6.
A person travels on a cycle from home to church on a straight road with wind against him. He took $4$ hours to reach there. On the way back he took $3$ hours as the wind was in the same direction. If there is no wind, how much time does he take to travel from home to church?
A. 3 hours 35 minutes 12 secondsB. 3 hours 32 minutes 32 secondsC. 3 hours 30 minutes 00 secondsD. 3 hours 25 minutes 42 seconds
mediumAsked in NIMCET 2008View solution ›
Q7.
A body travels from A to B in 10 s with a speed of 50 km/h and returns with a speed of 100 km/h in 5 s. The average speed and the average velocity for the whole journey are
A. 17.5 m per sec, 0 km/hB. 16.5 m per sec, 0 km/hC. 15.5 m per sec, 0 km/hD. 18.5 m per sec, 0 km/h
mediumAsked in NIMCET 2018View solution ›
Q8.
A train overtakes two persons who are walking in the same direction in which the train is going, at the rate of 2 kmph and 4 kmph, and passes them completely in 9 and 10 seconds respectively. The length of the train is:
A. 72 mB. 54 mC. 50 mD. 45 m
mediumAsked in NIMCET 2019View solution ›