Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-08-07

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 5.0)

In many countries some people say that it is very important to spend large sums of money on constructing new railway lines for very fast trains between cities and others believe that we spent all of money on improving existing public transport. In my opinion it is important to spent a large amount of money on constructing new railway lines for very fast trains between cities.

Firstly, my opinion is to spent a lot of money on new railway lines because the journey of train is very comfortable and very cheap on the other hand the lo0cal transport are very expensive and un comfortable if we spent all money on new railway lines the travel of another cities became very easy an comfortable because the journey of train is very cheap. For example the people who want to travel in those cities where the railway line is not exist the man use a local transport and this is very high cost and uncomfortable if the railway line is constricting in this city the travel became easy and cheap. Therefore the new railway line is very important foe good travel.

Secondly, Most of the people say that the money should be spent on improving existing public transport like buses, vans and rickshaws. The different people use this transport for going one place to another place mostly the buses and vans gave a important role to went to another place and mostly people say that the money should be spent on this local transport for good and comfortable journey but this transport is very expensive.

To sum up, I believe that the money should be spent on new tracks for the train it is very important to travel toward different cities because the journey of train is very comfortable and cheap and people feel happy on travel the train. some people believe that the money should be spent on public transport.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion. However, the development of ideas is limited and repetitive. For instance, the argument for high-speed trains relies heavily on the claim that they are 'cheap' and 'comfortable' without explaining the economic or infrastructure complexities involved. The counter-argument regarding local transport is also underdeveloped, lacking specific examples or a nuanced discussion of why improving existing systems might be more sustainable. The ideas are presented but not fully extended, which limits the depth of the response.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay is organised into paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the structure. However, the use of cohesive devices is often mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'To sum up'. Some transitions are awkward, such as 'on the other hand the lo0cal transport are very expensive', which does not effectively contrast the previous point. Additionally, the referencing is sometimes unclear, and the flow between sentences is occasionally disjointed, making the progression of ideas feel somewhat forced rather than natural.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The vocabulary is generally adequate for the task but lacks the range and precision required for higher bands. There is significant repetition of basic words like 'money', 'spend', 'comfortable', and 'cheap'. The student attempts to use some topic-specific vocabulary, but there are errors in word choice and collocation, such as 'the journey of train' instead of 'train travel' and 'the railway line is not exist' instead of 'does not exist'. These errors are noticeable and occasionally impact the clarity of the message.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The essay relies heavily on simple sentence structures. While there are attempts at complex sentences, they are frequently marred by grammatical errors, such as 'if we spent all money on new railway lines the travel of another cities became very easy'. There are consistent issues with verb tense consistency ('spent' instead of 'spend'), subject-verb agreement, and article usage. Punctuation is also inconsistent, with several run-on sentences that lack necessary commas or full stops. These errors occur frequently and occasionally cause difficulty for the reader.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.