SOLUTION: I am having trouble setting up the initial equation; I always have this problem when encountering a story problem. A bus leaves a station at 1 P.M., traveling west at an avera

Question 118971: I am having trouble setting up the initial equation; I always have this problem when encountering a story problem.

A bus leaves a station at 1 P.M., traveling west at an average rate of 44 mi/h. One hour later a second bus leaves the same station, traveling east at a rate of 48 mi/h. At what time will the two buses be 274 mi apart?

Answer by solver91311(24713) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
When the second bus starts its trip, the busses are already 44 miles apart because the first bus has been traveling 1 hour at 44 miles/hr.

Once the second bus starts, the two busses are getting farther apart at the rate of 44 mph plus 48 mph or 92 mph. The question becomes how long does it take to travel the remainder of the 274 miles, i.e. 274 - 44 = 230 miles at 92 mph.

.

So the busses will be 274 miles apart 2 and a half hours after the 2nd bus starts. We know that the first bus starts at 1 PM, and the second bus starts one hour later or 2 PM, so 2 PM plus 2.5 hours is 4:30 PM.
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