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A train 125 m long passes a man, running at 5 km/hr in the same direction in which the train is going, in 10 seconds. The speed of the train is:

Difficulty: Easy

Correct Answer: 50 km/hr

Explanation:

Given Data

  • Train length = 125 m
  • Man's speed = 5 km/hr
  • Overtaking time = 10 s
  • Direction = same (use relative speed = vtrain − vman)

Step 1: Compute relative speed from distance and time
Relative distance to overtake = train length = 125 m Time = 10 s Relative speed (m/s) = Distance ÷ Time = 125 ÷ 10 = 12.5 m/s


Step 2: Convert relative speed to km/hr
1 m/s = 3.6 km/hr Relative speed = 12.5 × 3.6 = 45 km/hr


Step 3: Get train's actual speed (same direction)
vtrain − vman = 45 vtrain = 45 + 5 = 50 km/hr


Sanity Check (all in m/s)
vman = 5 × (5/18) = 1.388... m/s vtrain = 12.5 + 1.388... = 13.888... m/s = 13.888... × 3.6 = 50 km/hr ✔


Final Answer
The speed of the train is 50 km/hr.

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