Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-14

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 5.5)

It is often argued that in many countries due to increasing public transport demand government should spend funds on constructiong and establishing new railway tracks with trains bewtween metropolitan areas. Others contend that this fundings and expenses should be used to redeveloped the existing transport ways. I agree with the perspective that there should be a balnace between these two approaches as due to traffic congestion and increasing population, there is a significant need to establish new railway lines. It is also a concerning view that if govrernment can not able to spent specific amount for maintainance and smooth running of already present public transport means then there is no profit to build new ones.

Although new source of transport and inventions for public transport are a basic right of a public, it is compulsory for their well being to maintained pre existing facilities. If out-dated and faulty engines are present in the transport sources then there existance have no value. This approach can cause detrimental effect on the economy as well as industrial structure of the country. For example, by passing years if proper maintainace and check and balnce not proceeded then shortage of public facilities occur as well as recycling and management of these metal structures also a big issue of many under-developed countries.

In other hands, technology has improved a lot by introducing new railways lines with modern facilities the government can boosted their economy, decrease traffic congestion and road accidents. Additionally, by providing new means of transportation government can facilitate their public with better trafeckking between cities. But money expenditure on these facilities can prove a beneficial step for government and citizens when proper management and legislation establish to maintain their proper working.

In conclusion, I believe that there should be introduced new methods to construct new railway lines with modern inventions but main responsibility of the government bodies is that they make policies to spend more money on the maintaninance and working of pre existing public transport to get more benefits regarding economy and well being of public.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing the construction of new high-speed rail lines and the alternative of improving existing public transport, while also providing a clear personal opinion. The writer's position is articulated in the introduction and maintained throughout the essay. Ideas are generally relevant, though some arguments, such as the economic impact of faulty engines, could have been extended with greater depth or clarity. The conclusion effectively summarises the main points and reiterates the stance. Overall, the task is adequately fulfilled, meeting the requirements for a Band 6.0.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

The essay displays a coherent overall arrangement with a recognisable introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. Paragraphing is utilised to separate distinct ideas, such as the focus on maintaining existing infrastructure versus building new lines. However, cohesion is sometimes faulty or mechanical, with transitional phrases like 'In other hands' (instead of 'On the other hand') and referencing errors that obscure the flow of ideas. While logical organisation is present, the repetitive phrasing and occasional awkward linking devices prevent the text from achieving a higher band score.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.0

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common items such as 'detrimental effect', 'metropolitan areas', and 'infrastructure' equivalents. However, there are frequent word choice errors, incorrect collocations, and spelling mistakes throughout the text, including 'constructiong', 'bevtwetween', 'fundings', 'redeveloped', 'balnace', 'goversnment', 'can not able to spent', and 'trafeckking'. These errors do not entirely impede communication, but they restrict the lexical score to a Band 5.0.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating some control over multi-clause structures. However, the text contains a high frequency of grammatical errors, particularly regarding verb forms, subject-verb agreement, and prepositions, such as 'if govrernment can not able to spent', 'to maintained pre existing facilities', and 'by passing years if proper maintainace and check and balnce not proceeded'. These recurring structural and tense inaccuracies frequently cause difficulty for the reader and prevent the response from reaching a higher band.

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.