The speed of two railway enginesis in the ratio 5 4 If they moveonparallel tracks in the same direct...........

Quantitative Aptitude (CPO) Time & distance

The speed of two railway enginesis in the ratio 5 : 4. If they moveonparallel tracks in the same direction and if the slower engine is

ahead of the faster engine by 8 km when the latter starts, then how far will the faster engine have to travel before it overtakes the

slower one?

This questions was previously asked in

SSC CPO 9th Dec 2019 Shift-1

Let’s break this down:

- The speed ratio is 5:4, so for every 5 km the faster engine travels, the slower one does 4 km.

- Say the slower engine’s speed is 4x km/h and the faster is 5x km/h.

- When the faster engine starts, the slower one is already 8 km ahead.

- The speed difference (how fast the faster engine “catches up”) = 5x - 4x = x km/h.

- To close an 8 km gap at x km/h, time = 8/x hours.

- In that time, the faster engine travels (5x) × (8/x) = 40 km.

Let’s look at the options:

1. 48 km – too much.

2. 32 km – too little.

3. 40 km – this fits our calculation exactly.

4. 36 km – no, doesn’t match the math.

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