Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-09-28

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 contemporary societies, traffic congestion has become an increasingly contentious issue in large cities and therefore, authorities and transportation companies are finding reliable and environmentally friendly ways to tackle this issue. Some people believe that it is beneficial to spend a significant amount of money on introducing new railway lanes, however, others contend that existing public transportation system should be improved. I personally believe that the latter approach is more practical and effective.

On the one hand, the appraoch to construct new railway lines has various advantages such as faster travelling, and seems a quick solution to tackle serious problems such as traffic congestion and road accidents. It would allow travellers from different fields such as businesses, education, healthcare, and technology to reach their destination quickly. Moreover, a particular road type which would only allow trains to operate, as a result, reduce air pollution and there would be no chance of road accidents. However, the approach is not without its limitation including limited time schedules, and it is expensive for authorities to introduce.

On the other hand, an investment by authorities to improve public transportation system has more advantages compared with the previous approach. The approach is practical due to its affordablity and flexibilty to establish. Improving public transport, frequent and flexible time schedules, and good seatings would encourage more people to use public transport rather than private ones. This as a result, would reduce the number of other vehicles on road without restricting their flow completely, and make the flow of traffic smoother. For instance, improved public tranportation system would encourage more and more people to relay on it instead of using private vehicles which would solve problems to some extent pragmatically.

From my perspective, investing on the existing transport is more environmentally friendly way to tackle environmental pollution for individuals and authorities. It is affordable for transport companies to invest on improving public transport which would improve traffic flow, reduce road accidents, provide suitable time schedules to general public, and most importantly would not limit the flow of other vehicle completely.

To conclude, both perspectives have their unique benefits. First notion seems a quick solution to environmental problems, traffic congestion, and road accidents, while, the second perspective is known for its affordablity, people accessibility, and suitablity. Therefore, second approach is most pragmatic and effective for long run.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

The response successfully addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both views—constructing new railway lines for fast trains and improving existing public transport—while clearly stating and maintaining a personal opinion throughout. In the introduction, you state that you believe the latter approach is more practical, and this position is consistently supported in the body paragraphs and the conclusion. Ideas are extended with relevant reasoning, such as discussing the financial costs, speed, and environmental implications of fast trains compared to the affordability and flexibility of upgrading current transit systems. Although some arguments tend to generalise slightly, the overall task fulfillment easily satisfies the requirements for a Band 7.0.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

Your essay demonstrates a clear logical organisation and progression throughout. Each paragraph has a distinct focus, starting with an introduction that outlines the debate and your stance, followed by well-defined body paragraphs introduced with standard cohesive phrases like 'On the one hand' and 'On the other hand'. You use cohesive devices adequately to guide the reader through your arguments. However, paragraphing and referencing can occasionally feel somewhat mechanical, and some sentences lack seamless transitions, such as 'This as a result, would reduce the number of other vehicles on road'. These minor lapses keep the response at a solid Band 6.5.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You display an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for an academic task, successfully attempting less common items such as 'contentious issue', 'environmentally friendly', and 'pragmatically'. However, there are noticeable word choice and spelling errors throughout the text, including 'appraoch' (instead of approach), 'affordablity' (affordability), 'flexibilty' (flexibility), 'tranportation' (transportation), and 'relay' (rely). Furthermore, phrases like 'good seatings' and 'investing on' show minor collocation inaccuracies. Because these errors do not impede communication but prevent higher-level precision, a Band 6.0 is appropriate.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The essay displays a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, showing an ability to construct compound and multi-clause sentences effectively, such as 'In contemporary societies, traffic congestion has become an increasingly contentious issue...'. However, there are several grammatical errors and punctuation slips, particularly missing articles ('on road', 'to general public', 'for long run'), incorrect prepositions ('investing on'), and awkward comma placements. While these errors occur with some frequency, the majority of your sentences are comprehensible and complex structures are attempted without fully distorting the meaning. This performance fits comfortably within the Band 6.0 descriptors.

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