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Four walkers and one lantern on a narrow bridge

Question

Four people must cross a bridge at night. At most two can be on it at once, they share a single lantern that must accompany every crossing, and a pair moves at the slower person's speed. Individually they need 11, 22, 55 and 1010 minutes. What is the shortest total time to get everyone across?

Short answer

1717 minutes. Send 11 and 22 over (22), bring 11 back (11), send 55 and 1010 together (1010), bring 22 back (22), and send 11 and 22 again (22). Pairing the two slowest saves more than having the fastest escort everyone (1919).

Adapted from QuantQuestions.io; question and answer rewritten by SelfMadeQuant.com.

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