SOLUTION: Hi. This problem seems to be missing a variable. Can you help me solve it please. A passenger train left Miami and travelled towards New York. 14 hours later another train left tr

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Question 181654: Hi. This problem seems to be missing a variable. Can you help me solve it please.
A passenger train left Miami and travelled towards New York. 14 hours later another train left traveling at 45 km/h in an effort to catch up with the first train. Train 2 caught up 4 hours later. What is the First trains average speed?
I tried setting the distances equal to each other
T1= rt=
T2= 45*18=810
rt1=810
but as I have neither the speed nor the time for train 1, I'm stumped. Help please.
Found 2 solutions by eperette, Alan3354:
Answer by eperette(173) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
Concept: speed=distance/time
We know that train 2 was going at a speed of 45km/hour and traveled 4 hours to catch up with train 1...so
45=d/4
45(4)=(d/4)(4)
180=d
so the distance that train2 traveled in 4 hours was 180km...
Now train1 traveled this same distance in how long? well we know it got a head start of 14hrs. and then the 4hrs. train2 had to travel ....
train1 traveled 180km in 18hrs.
so
speed=180km/18hrs.
speed=10km/hr

Answer by Alan3354(69443) (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
A passenger train left Miami and travelled towards New York. 14 hours later another train left traveling at 45 km/h in an effort to catch up with the first train. Train 2 caught up 4 hours later. What is the First trains average speed?
-----------------------
r1 = speed of 1st train
r2 = speed of 2nd train 45 km/h
After 18 hours, train 1 had travelled the same distance that train 2 travelled in 4 hours, so r2 = 4.5r1.
r1 = 10 km/h, zipping right along.