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Speed, Distance and Time - Edexcel GCSE Higher Maths

Typically 3-5 marks per paper · Spec 1MA1

Speed is a compound measure: it is built from two other measures, which is why spec references R1 and R11 put it alongside density and pressure. The relationship never changes, speed=distancetime\text{speed} = \frac{\text{distance}}{\text{time}}, and Edexcel expects you to rearrange it in either direction without being told to.

This is crossover content, so a straightforward speed question can appear early on a Higher paper for 2 or 3 marks. The Higher versions of it usually hide a unit conversion inside: a time given in minutes when the speed is in kilometres per hour, a speed in metres per second when the answer is wanted in kilometres per hour, or a journey split into legs with different speeds. The Exam Aid sheet issued with 1MA1 papers does not carry the speed relationship, so this one is recall.

Two habits protect the marks. Convert the time to hours before you divide, because 1 hour 45 minutes is 1.75 hours and never 1.45. And for a journey in parts, add the distances and add the times, then divide once at the end: an average speed is not the average of the two speeds, and a question that looks like it should give 45 usually will not.

Worked example

A van travels 60 km at an average speed of 40 km/h. It then travels a further 60 km at an average speed of 60 km/h. Work out the average speed for the whole journey, in km/h.
[4 marks]
  1. First leg: time=6040=1.5\text{time} = \frac{60}{40} = 1.5 hours.
    M1: distance divided by speed for one leg
  2. Second leg: time=6060=1\text{time} = \frac{60}{60} = 1 hour.
    M1: the second time, in the same units
  3. Whole journey: 120 km in 2.5 hours.
    M1: totals formed, distances added and times added
  4. average speed=1202.5=48\text{average speed} = \frac{120}{2.5} = 48 km/h.
    A1: 48, not 50, which is what averaging the two speeds would give

Practice questions

These are original questions in Edexcel 1MA1 Higher style. The early ones use the relationship directly; later ones bury a unit conversion or split the journey into legs, which is how the topic is set at Higher tier. Times are exact unless a question asks you to round.

No account needed: the questions below are always free to check, plus 8 extra questions today. Your score so far updates as you go.

  1. Question 1 Warm-up [1 mark]
    Which calculation gives the time taken for a journey?
    Answer options for question 1
  2. Question 2 Warm-up [2 marks]
    A distance-time graph for a journey is a straight line from the point (0 hours, 0 km) to the point (2 hours, 90 km). Work out the speed, in km/h.
  3. Question 3 Exam pace [3 marks]
    A lorry travels 108 km in 90 minutes. Work out its average speed, in km/h.
  4. Question 4 Exam pace [3 marks]
    A car travels at 63 km/h for 40 minutes. Work out the distance travelled, in km.
  5. Question 5 Exam pace [3 marks]
    A car's average speed for a 195 km journey is 78 km/h. Work out the time taken, in hours.
  6. Question 6 Stretch [4 marks]
    A journey consists of 120 km at an average speed of 80 km/h, a 30 minute stop, then 90 km at an average speed of 60 km/h. Work out the average speed for the whole journey including the stop, in km/h.

Common mistakes examiners see

  • Writing 2 hours 30 minutes as 2.30 hours, so a 150 km journey comes out at 65.2 km/h instead of 60 km/h.

    Divide the minutes by 60 before you use them: 30 minutes is 0.5 hours, 45 is 0.75, 20 is one third. Write the decimal time on its own line so the examiner can see the conversion even if the division goes wrong.

  • Averaging the two speeds on a two-part journey, giving 50 km/h for the worked example above rather than 48 km/h.

    Total the distance, total the time, then divide once. The mean of the speeds is only correct when the two legs take the same time, which is almost never the case in an exam question.

  • Multiplying by 1000 and dividing by 3600 in the wrong order when converting between m/s and km/h, so 20 m/s becomes 5.6 km/h.

    Sanity check the direction: a speed in km/h should be a bigger number than the same speed in m/s, by a factor of 3.6. Multiply by 3.6 going from m/s to km/h, divide by 3.6 coming back.

  • Giving the answer in the units the question gave you rather than the units it asked for, such as leaving a time in hours when the question said minutes.

    Underline the units in the last line of the question before you start. A correct value in the wrong unit scores the method marks and loses the accuracy mark.

  • Reading a distance-time graph's flat section as the object moving at a steady speed.

    A flat section means the distance is not changing, so the object is stationary. A steady speed is a straight line that slopes, and the steeper it is the faster the object is going.

Frequently asked questions

Is the speed formula given in the Edexcel exam?
No. The Exam Aid sheet issued with 1MA1 papers for the 2025 to 2027 windows carries geometry, trigonometry, quadratic and compound interest formulae, but not the compound measures. You need to know speed=distancetime\text{speed} = \frac{\text{distance}}{\text{time}} and be able to rearrange it.
How do you convert m/s to km/h?
Multiply by 3.6. A metre per second is 3600 metres per hour, which is 3.6 kilometres per hour, so 20 m/s is 72 km/h. Going the other way, divide by 3.6.
Why is the average speed not the average of the two speeds?
Because you spend longer travelling at the slower speed, so it counts for more of the journey. Travelling 60 km at 40 km/h takes 1.5 hours while 60 km at 60 km/h takes 1, so the slow leg fills more of the time and pulls the average down to 48 km/h rather than 50.
How many marks is speed, distance and time worth on Edexcel Higher?
Usually 3-5 marks per paper. A direct calculation is 2 or 3 marks, and a journey in legs or one needing a unit conversion runs to 4 or 5. It also turns up inside other questions, particularly bounds questions where a speed has to be calculated from rounded values.

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