Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-11-08

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In a number of countries, some people think it is necessary to spend large sums of money on constructing new railway lines for very fast trains between cities. Others believe the money should be spent on improving existing public transport.

Discuss both these views and give your own opinion.

Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

 

Student answer (Band 6.5)

There is an ongoing debate whether governement should spend a large substantial amount of money in developing the railway network between cities or the money should be spend on improving public transport. Although, fast-line trains have significant benefits, I believe updating the current transport infrastructure should be the priority as it can benefit high proportion of population.

On the one hand, investing in railway lines can provide significant benefits as it connecting the major cities. Large number of population have to travel to different cities for business or education purpose. Having a fast train could reduce the travel time. For example, with the introduction of bullet train the time to travel between cities substantially decrease. Moreover, these trains are eco-friendly cause less pollution than the public transports. Furthermore, it contribute to te economic development as the revenue and less time consumpion make owrk efficient.

On the other hand, improving the public transport have much more benefits as it covers large population. Daily commuters like workforce or students commute on daily basis using public transport like metro buses and modern vehicle. They can have larger transport accessibility. Investing in existing transport infrastruture going to make life more easily. For instance, dense populated cities, expanding buses network and upgrading metro system can reduce overcrowding. This encourage people to use public transport instead of private car. Moreover, upgrading exisiting system would be less cost efficient to the government resources.

In my opinion, although high speed trains have its long term economic growth benefits. Improving public commute should be the priority because it covers large population and its cost efficient. Once public transportation is upgraded governement can focus on constructing the new railway lines.

In conclusion, both fast trains and public transport is important and have its benefits. Due to wider range and improving the life and economy with less budget, public transport should be encourgaed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You address both views and state a consistent preference for improving existing public transport, explaining that it serves more people and is more cost-effective. The discussion of high-speed rail includes relevant points about travel time, pollution and economic activity, while the public-transport paragraph gives a practical example involving buses and metro systems. This covers the task well, but some ideas are less fully developed than others: for instance, the claim that rail investment improves economic development is asserted rather than explained, and the cost comparison is not supported with a specific reason or example. To strengthen the response, explain how each benefit affects people or government spending, and make the final comparison more precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 7.0

The essay has a clear overall structure: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, your opinion, and a conclusion. The progression is easy to follow, and signposts such as “On the one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In my opinion” help readers track the argument. You also connect examples to the relevant claims, particularly the discussion of overcrowding. Some linking is a little mechanical, with repeated “Moreover” and “Furthermore,” and the conclusion largely repeats the opinion rather than drawing the comparison together. Use a wider range of natural links, and make references between sentences more explicit so that each paragraph develops as a connected line of reasoning.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of topic vocabulary, including “railway network,” “travel time,” “overcrowding,” and “transport accessibility,” and the intended meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “economic development” and “transport infrastructure.” However, several word-choice and collocation problems reduce precision: “a large substantial amount” is redundant, “less cost efficient” does not clearly express the intended comparison, and “public commute” is not a natural phrase in this context. Spelling errors such as “governement,” “infrastruture,” and “encourgaed” also detract from control. Aim for accurate, natural combinations and proofread spelling; this will make your vocabulary more flexible and precise.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including a concession in “Although high speed trains have its long term economic growth benefits” and a conditional structure beginning “Once public transportation is upgraded.” Meaning is usually recoverable, but some grammatical errors remain across the response. Examples include subject–verb agreement in “it connecting” and “This encourage,” incorrect verb forms in “the time … decrease” and “would be spend,” and article or plural problems in “Large number of population.” The opening also has an incomplete contrast structure after “Although.” Work on agreement, verb forms, and complete clause construction, then check each sentence for articles and singular/plural consistency. More accurate control of these patterns would make the argument easier to read.

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