Subject: General Aptitude · Chapter: Time and Distance · Exam: · Marks: · Difficulty:
On return from a business trip, Mr X was to be picked up from the railway station by his coachman. However, his meeting having finished before schedule, he left his destination earlier by catching an earlier train as a result of which he arrived 2 hours early. Immediately on arrival he rang up home for the coach and was told that it had just left in order to be exactly in time for the train by which he was scheduled to come. To save time he started walking home ward a 4 mph. On the way he met the coachman who brought him home an hour before schedule. How far is Mr X's house from the railway station?
(a)12 miles
(b)16 miles
(c)18 miles
(d)24 miles
Answer
Answer (as printed): D
Explanation
Clearly, the coachman needed 2 hours to reach the station from Mr X’s house or 4 hours for the entire round trip. But now he took (4 – 1) = 3 hours for the round trip. 1 Thus he went one way in 1 hrs i.e., 2 1 Mr X walked for 1 hrs. 2 1 Distance covered in 1 hrs while walking 2 3 = 4 × miles = 6 miles. 2 But this distance would have been covered by the coach- 1 1 man in 2 – 1 hr = hr. 2 2 1 Speed of the coachman = 6 ÷ mph = 12 mph. 2 \ Distance between the house and the station = Distance covered by coachman in 2 hrs = (12 × 2) miles = 24 miles.
Explanation as extracted from the printed page; notation may be imperfect.