Railway Direction and Distance Questions with Solutions by PW

Direction and distance is one of the easiest scoring topics in the railway reasoning section. Most questions are based on directions, turns, and the shortest distance between two points. A clear understanding of these concepts can help you answer such questions quickly and accurately.

Many candidates lose marks not because the questions are difficult, but because they miss a turn or skip drawing a rough diagram. The railway direction and distance questions with their step-by-step solutions will help you understand the concepts, avoid common mistakes, and improve your reasoning speed.

Why Direction Sense Matters in Railway Exams

Railway reasoning direction questions test how well a candidate can track movement across four main directions (North, South, East, West) and four intermediate directions (North-East, North-West, South-East, South-West). 

Most questions describe a person or object moving in a sequence of turns, and the candidate has to find either the shortest distance between the starting and ending point or the final direction faced. A simple rough sketch on paper, marking each turn as it is described, is usually enough to solve these correctly. 

The Pythagoras theorem is also frequently used when the path forms a right angle, since the shortest distance between two points is the hypotenuse of the triangle formed by the movements.

Railway Reasoning Direction and Distance Questions PDF

Download PW's Railway Direction and Distance PDF to access important questions with solved answers and easy explanations. It helps improve your understanding, accuracy, and speed in the reasoning section.

Download Railway Direction and Distance Questions PDF

Railway Reasoning Direction and Distance Important Questions by PW

PW's Direction and Distance practice set includes important railway reasoning questions with solved answers and step-by-step explanations to help candidates understand the concepts and improve their problem-solving skills. 

Q1. Ajay walked 3 km towards North, took a left turn and walked 6 km, then took a right turn and walked 5 km. What is the minimum distance from the starting point to the ending point? Options:

 (A) 17 km 

(B) 12 km 

(C) 15 km 

(D) 10 km 

Answer: (D) 10 km 

Explanation: Plotting the turns on a diagram, the path forms a right-angled triangle with a base of 6 km and a perpendicular of 8 km. Using (Hypotenuse)² = (Base)² + (Perpendicular)², the distance works out to √(36+64) = √100 = 10 km.

Q2. Maheep walks 120 m south, turns left and walks A m, turns right and walks 80 m, then turns left and walks B m to reach home. The shortest distance between his office and home is 290 m. What is A + B? Options: 

(A) 230 m 

(B) 200 m 

(C) 240 m 

(D) 210 m 

Answer: (D) 210 m 

Explanation: Drawing Maheep's path shows a right triangle where the hypotenuse (office to home) is 290 m and one side is 200 m. Applying Pythagoras: 290² = 200² + (A+B)², so (A+B)² = 44100, giving A + B = 210 m.

Q3. If A×B means A is south of B; A+B means A is north of B; A%B means A is east of B; A−B means A is west of B, then in P%Q+R−S, what direction is S with respect to Q? 

Options: 

(A) South-west 

(B) South-east 

(C) North-west 

(D) North-east 

Answer: (B) South-east 

Explanation: Reading the coded equation as P is east of Q, R is north of Q, and S is west of R, plotting these positions on a direction diagram places S to the south-east of Q.

Q4. X walks 3 km west, then turns and travels 4 km north. What is the shortest distance between the start and end point? Options: 

(A) 7 km 

(B) 5 km 

(C) 6 km 

(D) 8 km 

Answer: (B) 5 km 

Explanation: The 3 km and 4 km legs form a right triangle, so by Pythagoras: √(4²+3²) = √(16+9) = √25 = 5 km.

Q5. One morning after sunrise, Gopal stood facing a pole, and the pole's shadow fell exactly to his right. Which direction was he facing? Options: 

(A) East 

(B) West 

(C) North 

(D) South 

Answer: (D) South 

Explanation: Since the sun rises in the east, morning shadows always fall towards the west. If that westward shadow is falling to Gopal's right, he must be facing south.

Q6. If North-East is called East, North is called North-East, and North-West is called North, what will South be called as? Options: 

(A) West 

(B) South-West 

(C) North-West 

(D) East 

Answer: (B) South-West 

Explanation: Comparing the original and renamed directions shows the entire direction wheel has rotated 45° anticlockwise. Applying this same 45° anticlockwise shift to South gives South-West.

Q7. Rocky starts from A, drives 3 km east, takes a left turn and drives 4 km, another left turn and drives 3 km, then one more left turn and drives 2 km, stopping at B. How far and in which direction should he drive to reach A again? Options: 

(A) 2 km towards south 

(B) 3 km towards south 

(C) 3 km towards east 

(D) 2 km towards north 

Answer: (A) 2 km towards south 

Explanation: Tracing each left turn on a diagram shows Rocky's path loops back close to the starting point, leaving a 2 km gap directly south of B, which is the route needed to return to A.

Q8. Paul walks 12 km north, turns west and walks 14 km, turns south and walks 10 km, then turns east and walks 14 km. In which direction is Paul from his starting point? Options: 

(A) North 

(B) South 

(C) North-West 

(D) South-West 

Answer: (A) North 

Explanation: Plotting the four legs shows the westward and eastward distances (14 km each) cancel out, while the net north-south movement (12 km north minus 10 km south) leaves Paul 2 km north of his starting point.

Q9. Pratik travels 30 m south, turns right and moves 30 m, walks 30 m turning left, then makes a second left turn and moves another 30 m. How far has he moved from his starting point? Options: 

(A) 60 m 

(B) 50 m 

(C) 40 m 

(D) 20 m 

Answer: (A) 60 m

Explanation: Drawing out the four 30 m legs shows Pratik's straight-line distance from the start equals the sum of two of the parallel legs (30 m + 30 m) = 60 m.

Q10. Amit walked 20 km left after travelling 10 km west of his school, then 20 km east before turning left and finishing with 20 km. How far was he from school? Options:

 (A) 10 km 

(B) 15 km 

(C) 5 km 

(D) 8 km 

Answer: (A) 10 km 

Explanation: Mapping Amit's route shows his distance from school equals the difference between his final eastward leg and his first westward leg: (20 − 10) = 10 km.

Q11. Tanmay moves 41 m north, turns right, then slightly left, and finally turns back to his left after 3 km of trekking. Which way is he now moving? Options: 

(A) West 

(B) South 

(C) South-East

 (D) North-West 

Answer: (A) West 

Explanation: Following each turn on a diagram starting from north, the sequence of right-then-left turns ends with Tanmay facing and moving west.

Q12. Sanjay walks 10 km east, turns right and walks 5 km, then turns right and walks 10 km. How far (in km) is he from his starting point? 

Options: (A) 10 km 

(B) 5 km 

(C) 15 km 

(D) 20 km 

Answer: (B) 5 km 

Explanation: Plotting the path shows the two 10 km legs run parallel in opposite directions and cancel out, leaving Sanjay exactly 5 km from his starting point, matching the middle leg.

Q13. Jannat is facing a direction, turns 135° clockwise, then 180° anticlockwise, then 135° anticlockwise, and finally 135° clockwise, ending up facing north-east. Which direction was she facing initially? Options: 

(A) North-west 

(B) West 

(C) East

(D) North 

Answer: (C) East 

Explanation: Adding the clockwise turns (135°+135° = 270°) and anticlockwise turns (180°+135° = 315°) and taking the difference (315° − 270° = 45° anticlockwise) shows Jannat's initial direction was east.

Q14. If West becomes North-West, what will East become? Options: 

(A) South-East 

(B) North-West 

(C) North-East 

(D) South-West

Answer: (A) South-East 

Explanation: Since West rotating to North-West means the whole direction wheel shifted 45° clockwise, applying the same 45° clockwise rotation to East gives South-East.

Q15. Ram leaves his house walking west, then turns right, then right again, and finally turns left. In which direction is he going now? Options: 

(A) West 

(B) North 

(C) East 

(D) South 

Answer: (B) North 

Explanation: Tracking each turn from the initial westward direction, the right-right-left sequence leaves Ram facing and walking north.

Q16. K is 40 m south-west of L. If M is 40 m south-east of L, then M is in which direction of K? Options:

(A) West 

(B) East 

(C) South 

(D) North 

Answer: (B) East 

Explanation: Plotting K, L and M on a diagram with L at the centre shows K and M lie at equal distances on either side of south, making M directly east of K.

Q17. When Ram reached his office, he was facing east. On leaving his house, he turned right, left, right and right respectively. Which direction was Ram walking in first? Options: 

(A) East 

(B) West 

(C) North 

(D) South 

Answer: (B) West 

Explanation: Working backwards from his final eastward-facing position through the four turns shows Ram's face was pointing west when he first left his house.

Q18. Sachin walks 20 km north, turns left and walks 40 km, turns left again and walks 20 km, then moves 20 km after turning left once more. How far is he from his starting position? Options: 

(A) 15 km 

(B) 20 km 

(C) 10 km 

(D) None of these 

Answer: (B) 20 km 

Explanation: Mapping the route shows the starting point P and ending point Q lie on the same east-west line, with the distance between them equal to (40 − 20) = 20 km.

Q19. Sunny faces south, turns right and walks 20 m, turns right again and walks 10 m, turns left and walks 10 m, turns right and walks 20 m, then turns right again and walks 60 m. In which direction is he from the starting point? Options: 

(A) South-West 

(B) North-East 

(C) South 

(D) North 

Answer: (B) North-East 

Explanation: Constructing the diagram turn by turn from the initial southward-facing position shows Sunny ends up to the north-east of where he began.

Q20. Suresh leaves home and walks 30 m, takes a right turn and walks 10 m, takes another right turn and walks 30 m, then takes a left turn. If he is now moving south, in which direction did he start? Options: 

(A) West 

(B) East 

(C) South 

(D) North 

Answer: (B) East 

Explanation: Working backwards from his final southward direction through the right-right-left turn sequence shows Suresh's initial direction of walking was east.

Note: For the diagram-based working of each solution, refer to the attached PDF right before the Q&A section 

Tips to Solve Railway Direction Questions Faster

Railway direction questions become much easier when you solve them in a systematic way. Instead of trying to imagine the entire path in your mind, use a few simple techniques to reduce mistakes and save time during the exam.

• Draw a rough diagram as soon as you read the question. Mark North at the top and trace every movement step by step.

• Keep track of the current direction. Every left or right turn depends on the direction the person is currently facing, so update it after each turn.

• Use Pythagoras' theorem when the path forms a right-angled triangle to find the shortest distance quickly.

• Watch for direction changes. If directions are renamed or rotated in a clockwise or anticlockwise manner, apply the same change to all directions before answering.

• Read every movement carefully. A small mistake in distance or direction can lead to the wrong answer.

• Practise regularly. Solving different types of direction and distance questions improves both speed and accuracy for railway exams.