Two trains leave two different cities 1,029 miles apart and head directly toward every other on parallel tracks. If one train is traveling at 45 miles per hour and the other at 53 miles per hour, how many hours will it take before the trains pass?
Use the formula distance = rate × time for each train and add these values together so in which the distance equals 1,029 miles. For the ?rst train, d = 45t and for the second train d = 53t, where d is the distance and t is the time in hours. Add the distances and set them equal to 1,029: 45t + 53t = 1,029. Combine such as terms on the left side of the equation: 98t = 1,029; 98t/98 = 1,029/98 divide both sides of the equation through 98: 98t/98 = 1,029/98. The variable is now alone: t = 10.5 hours. The two trains will pass in 10.5 hours.