Study Material — 13 PYQs (2022–2022) · Concept Notes · Shortcuts
IBPS Clerk Speed Distance Time is a frequently tested subtopic — 13 previous year questions from 2022–2022 papers are included below with concept notes, key rules and shortcut tricks.
IBPS Clerk Speed Distance Time — Past Exam Questions
13 questions from actual IBPS Clerk papers · all shown free · click option to reveal solution
Exam Q 12022Previous Year Pattern
A car covers 150 km in 2.5 hours. How long will it take to cover 450 km at the same speed?
Exam Q 22022Previous Year Pattern
A cyclist travels at 15 km/h for 3 hours and then at 20 km/h for 2 hours. What is the average speed for the entire journey?
Exam Q 32022Previous Year Pattern
A bus travels 120 km in 3 hours. If it increases its speed by 20 km/h, how much time will it take to cover the same 120 km?
Exam Q 42022Previous Year Pattern
A man walks at 5 km/h and covers a certain distance in 4 hours. If he walks at 8 km/h, how much time will he save?
Exam Q 52022Previous Year Pattern
Two trains start from the same station at the same time. Train A travels at 60 km/h and Train B travels at 80 km/h in the same direction. After how many hours will they be 100 km apart?
Exam Q 62022Previous Year Pattern
A train travels 240 km in 4 hours at a constant speed. If it needs to cover 360 km at the same speed, how much additional time (in hours) will it require beyond the initial 4 hours?
Exam Q 72022Previous Year Pattern
Two runners start from the same point. Runner A runs at 8 m/s and Runner B runs at 6 m/s, both in the same direction. After how many seconds will Runner A be exactly 100 metres ahead of Runner B?
Exam Q 82022Previous Year Pattern
A car travels from City P to City Q at 60 km/h and returns from Q to P at 40 km/h. If the distance between the cities is 120 km, what is the average speed for the entire journey (in km/h)?
Exam Q 92022Previous Year Pattern
A boat travels 48 km downstream in 3 hours and 48 km upstream in 4 hours. What is the speed of the boat in still water (in km/h)?
Exam Q 102022Previous Year Pattern
A cyclist travels from Town P to Town Q at a certain speed. If he increases his speed by 6 km/h, he reaches 1 hour earlier. If he decreases his speed by 6 km/h, he reaches 2 hours later. What is the distance between the two towns?
Exam Q 112022Previous Year Pattern
A man walks from his home to the office at 4 km/h and returns at 6 km/h. The total time taken for the round trip is 5 hours. What is the distance between his home and office?
Exam Q 122022Previous Year Pattern
Two trains start simultaneously from stations A and B, which are 600 km apart. Train X travels from A to B at 80 km/h, and Train Y travels from B to A at 70 km/h. They meet at point P. Shortly after meeting, Train X breaks down and stops. Train Y continues and reaches station A. What is the distance covered by Train Y after the trains meet?
Exam Q 132022Previous Year Pattern
A boat travels 120 km downstream in 4 hours and 120 km upstream in 6 hours. If the boat's speed in still water is B km/h and the stream's speed is S km/h, what is the ratio B : S?
Concept Notes
Speed Distance Time— Rules & Concept
Core ConceptRead this first — the foundation of the topic
Speed, Distance, and Time form the foundation of motion problems in SSC CGL. This topic appears in 2-3 questions per exam and requires strong formula application skills. Core Concept: Speed measures how fast an object moves. Distance is the path covered. Time is the duration taken. These three are linked by a simple relationship that forms the base of all calculations.
Formula BlockMemorise — at least one formula appears in every paper
• Speed = Distance/Time (S = D/T)
• Distance = Speed × Time (D = S × T)
• Time = Distance/Speed (T = D/S)
Unit Conversions (Critical for SSC):
• km/hr to m/s: Multiply by 5/18
• m/s to km/hr: Multiply by 18/5
• 1 km/hr = 5/18 m/s
Exam PatternsWhat examiners ask — read before attempting PYQs
Shortcut 1 - Unit Conversion Trick
To convert km/hr to m/s, multiply by 5/18
Remember
36 km/hr = 10 m/s (this is a standard conversion to memorize)
Shortcut 2 - Distance Formula Rearrangement
When speed increases by x%, new time = Original time × 100/(100+x)
When speed decreases by x%, new time = Original time × 100/(100-x)
Worked ExampleSolve this step-by-step before moving on
Convert to m/s
Speed in m/s = 60 × 5/18 = 300/18 = 16.67 m/s
Answer: 16.67 m/s
Worked Example 2:
A train running at 54 km/hr takes 20 seconds to cross a platform 200m long. Find the length of the train.
1
Step 1
Convert speed to m/s
54 km/hr = 54 × 5/18 = 15 m/s
2
Step 2
Find total distance covered
Distance = Speed × Time = 15 × 20 = 300m
3
Step 3
Find train length
Train length = Total distance - Platform length = 300 - 200 = 100m
Answer: 100 meters
Shortcut 3 - Relative Speed:
• Same direction: Relative speed = |S1 - S2|
• Opposite direction: Relative speed = S1 + S2
Most Common Trap (#1 Mistake):
Students forget unit conversions! SSC deliberately mixes km/hr and m/s in the same question. Always check units in options and convert accordingly. Questions asking for train crossing times usually need m/s, while car journey problems often use km/hr.
Another frequent error is confusing relative motion directions. When two objects move toward each other, add their speeds. When moving in the same direction, subtract speeds.
Time-based problems often trick students with percentage changes in speed. Remember: if speed increases by 25%, time decreases by 20% (not 25%). Use the reciprocal relationship carefully.
Practice identifying whether the question asks for train length, crossing time, or platform length. Each requires different approaches but uses the same core formula.
Key Points to Remember
Master formula: Speed = Distance/Time and its variations D = S × T and T = D/S
Unit conversion: km/hr to m/s multiply by 5/18, m/s to km/hr multiply by 18/5
Standard conversion: 36 km/hr = 10 m/s (memorize this)
Relative speed: same direction subtract speeds, opposite direction add speeds
Train problems: Total distance = Train length + Platform/Bridge length
Speed increase by x%: New time = Original time × 100/(100+x)
Speed decrease by x%: New time = Original time × 100/(100-x)
Always check units in answer options before solving
Average speed = Total distance/Total time (not average of individual speeds)
Time and speed are inversely proportional when distance is constant
Exam-Specific Tips
1 km/hr equals exactly 5/18 m/s
36 km/hr equals exactly 10 m/s
72 km/hr equals exactly 20 m/s
Average speed formula: Total distance divided by total time
Relative speed when objects move toward each other: Sum of individual speeds
Relative speed when objects move in same direction: Difference of individual speeds
When speed increases by 20%, time decreases by 16.67%
When speed decreases by 20%, time increases by 25%
60-Second Revision — Speed Distance Time
Formula: Speed = Distance/Time, Distance = Speed × Time, Time = Distance/Speed
Remember: 36 km/hr = 10 m/s for quick conversions
Unit conversion: km/hr to m/s multiply by 5/18
Trap: Always check if answer needs km/hr or m/s units
Relative speed: Add for opposite directions, subtract for same direction