Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-08

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 6.0)

In modern era, both services bus transport and railway lines plays an important role. some believe that it is essential to allocate huge amount of budget for constructed new trains services between cities. other think that spend money on developing public transport. I will discuss my view points and opinion in upcoming paragraphs.

There are several benefits to improve railways lines. One possible reasons is traffic jam. As the trains community have a separate path they not wait for the car traffic light crossing. AS a result individuals easily move to their destination with confidence. For example, sometimes students and workers have to wait in traffic signals for a long time and this situation makes individuals tedious because workers or students have to reach their destination within a limited time. So, travelling by train will help them to manage their time table. Another reason is there will be less air pollution.

On the other hand, developing existing public transport has numerous potential aspects. Firstly, the remaining infrastructures will remain in perfect condition. The fact that without proper maintenance vehicles or road quality will be lost so a large amount of budget is needed to operate the existing system. Secondly, it will reduce the tax rate. Developing new projects needs extra money and government raise capital from citizens by increasing the tax rate. In order to do that, If governments spend capital on remaining infrastructure, no extra taxes are needed from citizens.

In conclusion, although developing existing traffic has several beneficial aspects, constructing railway traffic will improve the quality of the environment. Hence, by discussing both aspects, I believe government should spend more money on railway system

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response addresses both sides of the argument and provides a clear personal opinion in the conclusion. However, the development of ideas is somewhat limited. While you mention traffic congestion and pollution as benefits of high-speed rail, the arguments regarding existing public transport (maintenance and tax rates) are slightly underdeveloped. To reach a higher band, ensure that each point is supported by more detailed explanation or specific examples. The introduction is a bit repetitive and lacks a strong thesis statement, which impacts the overall clarity of your position from the outset.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, and there is a clear progression of ideas. You use some cohesive devices such as 'Firstly', 'Secondly', and 'On the other hand' to link your points. However, the use of these devices is sometimes mechanical, and there are instances where the flow between sentences is slightly disjointed, such as in the second paragraph where the transition between traffic jams and pollution is abrupt. Improving the variety of linking words and ensuring smoother transitions between sentences would enhance the coherence of your writing.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The vocabulary used is generally adequate for the task, allowing you to convey your meaning clearly. You attempt to use some topic-specific vocabulary like 'infrastructure', 'maintenance', and 'allocate', which is positive. However, there are several instances of awkward word choice and collocation errors, such as 'trains community' instead of 'train commuters' and 'quality will be lost' instead of 'quality will deteriorate'. To improve, focus on learning common collocations and using more precise terminology to express your ideas more naturally.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The essay contains a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but there are frequent grammatical errors throughout. Issues include subject-verb agreement ('bus transport and railway lines plays'), article usage ('the remaining infrastructures'), and sentence fragments or awkward phrasing ('other think that spend money'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to be noticeable. To improve, pay closer attention to basic grammar rules, particularly verb forms and pluralisation, and try to vary your sentence structures with more complex, error-free constructions.

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.