Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-10

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)

In many countries, some individual believes that large amount of money should be spent on the construction of new railyway lines for very fast trains between cities, while others thinks that money should be spent on improving the existing public transportation system.

Firstly, those who support constructing new railway lines have valid reasons for their view, because if has several benefits in building this, such as new and faster ways of transport and contructing a new transportation system could accomodate more individuals. Secondly, new railway lines would provide more travel options between cities which has more facilities, like the Wi-Fi could be included in trains, seats could be more comfortable compared to previous ways of transport.

However, the people thinks that money should be spent on improving the existing transportation system has some advantages and disadvantages. The first advantage is that Improving the existing transport system would generally cost less than constructing entirely new railway lines, while there are more disadvantages, in improving the existing railyways lines means we cannot access more cities that were newly populated, the older lines has a access to limited cities which was populated at the time of it's contruction.

In my opinion, contructing a new railyway lines for very fast trains will be a better options, because the old lines will not be as capable of handling such a high speed trains even after improving it, also more and more people can travel through one city to another city, people have more options to choose weather they've to reach early by travelling through high speed trails by paying more.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both proposed uses of public money and state a clear preference for new high-speed railway lines, so the main parts of the task are present. The case for new lines includes faster travel, more capacity and added facilities such as Wi-Fi; your final paragraph also explains that older lines may not support high speeds. However, the discussion of improving existing transport is less fully developed: you mention lower costs, then focus mainly on its limitation in reaching newly populated cities. Explain what improvements could achieve—for example, more frequent services or better reliability—and weigh these against the cost and reach of new lines. Some claims, such as “more and more people can travel,” would also benefit from a specific example or clearer explanation.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, a paragraph supporting new lines, a paragraph considering existing transport, and a concluding opinion. Sequencing words such as “Firstly,” “Secondly,” “However,” and “In my opinion” help readers follow the main stages. Cohesion is sometimes mechanical, though, and the contrast paragraph is not fully balanced: it introduces “advantages and disadvantages” but gives only one advantage before moving to disadvantages. Some references are also unclear, such as “building this” and “which has more facilities,” because the reader must infer what “this” and “which” refer to. Use clearer topic sentences and link each supporting point directly to the view it explains.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use relevant transport vocabulary, including “construction,” “transportation system,” “travel options,” and “high speed,” which allows you to communicate the central ideas. However, the range is limited and several expressions are inaccurate or repetitive, reducing precision. Examples include “new and faster ways of transport,” “more facilities,” and “a better options”; these do not express the intended ideas naturally. Spelling errors such as “railyway,” “contructing,” “accomodate,” and “weather” are noticeable and weaken control. Aim for more precise collocations and check spelling carefully. For instance, distinguish between expanding a network, upgrading existing services, and increasing passenger capacity rather than repeatedly referring to “transportation system” or “lines.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast introduced by “while” and a reason clause beginning “because.” However, complex structures are often faulty, and errors in agreement, articles, and sentence construction occur throughout. For example, “some individual believes” and “others thinks” do not maintain subject–verb agreement; “a better options” has an article–number mismatch; and “the older lines has a access” contains agreement and article errors. The sentence beginning “Firstly” also has an unclear construction: “because if has several benefits in building this.” Practise building accurate sentences around one main idea, then add subordinate clauses only when their relationships are clear. Check agreement and singular/plural forms during proofreading.

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