Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-10-26

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)

Public transports like bus, train, motor vehicles play a vital role in communication. However, lack of maintenance and regulations in traffic control system result in a huge discomfort for mass people while travelling. This problem gives birth to different types of opinions. Some people believe constructing new railways is the main solution whereas others have a different opinion on this fact. They think existing public transports should be upgraded with the money required for new railway. I agree with the latter opinion in this case.

Travelling from one city to another is one of the biggest nightmares for the general people. Both journey by bus or train cost a huge amount of time in this regard. There are a lot of transports on the street including bus, truck, car and so on. Most of the drivers tend not to follow any traffc rules which lead to devastating traffic jam on the road. It takes hours to move from one place to another due to this traffic while travelling by bus. Train in this case is a relief since there is no jam on the railway. But lack of number of trains scheduled for these types of inter-city journey and the tendency not to maintain the time-table properly kills time in this case as well. Hence, a lot of people feel constructing new railways for high speed trains might be a better solution.

However, there are already sufficient amount of public transports out there to transport the huge amount of population. The only things required are proper maintenace and regulations alongside upgrading the condition of the existing public buses, cars and trains since some of those are not in a position to be used on the road.

In developing countries which face quite a lot of problems in every sectors, constructing new railways for high speed trains might be too costly I feel. Rather this amount of money should be used for upgrading the existing vehicles and increasing some trains in number. Then some of the saved money can be used to develop other sectors as well.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You discuss both proposals and state a clear preference for improving existing transport, especially in the introduction and final paragraph. The explanation of the new-railway view is relevant: you acknowledge road congestion and unreliable train schedules as reasons people support high-speed lines. You also give a reason for your own view, noting the cost in developing countries and the need to repair vehicles and add trains. However, the comparison is not fully developed: the benefits of high-speed rail, such as faster inter-city journeys or reduced pressure on roads, are not explored, and the claim that there are already “sufficient” public transports is not supported. Develop each side with a specific example and explain more clearly why your preferred investment would be more effective.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, a paragraph explaining why some favour new railways, a paragraph supporting upgrades, and a concluding recommendation. Linking expressions such as “However,” “Hence,” and “Rather” help signal shifts in the argument, and the reader can follow the main line of reasoning. This meets the lower-band expectation of coherent organisation and shows some features of stronger progression. To make the flow more consistently logical, connect the short paragraph about existing transport more explicitly to the cost argument that follows. Some references are also vague, such as “these types of inter-city journey” and “this amount of money”; name the idea or investment directly so the links between sentences are clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a range of topic-related vocabulary, including “traffic jam,” “high speed trains,” “maintenance,” and “regulations,” and some choices communicate the transport problems effectively. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “devastating traffic jam” and “developing countries.” However, several word choices and collocations are inaccurate or unnatural, including “public transports,” “communication” for travel, “kills time,” and “sufficient amount of public transports.” Spelling slips such as “traffc” and “maintenace” also reduce control. These issues do not prevent the reader from understanding the argument, but they make the vocabulary less precise. Focus on natural collocations and accurate forms, and avoid repeating broad terms such as “problem” and “amount of money.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and complex sentence forms, including clauses with “since,” “which,” and “while,” and the main meaning is generally clear. For example, the sentence beginning “Most of the drivers tend not to follow…” links a cause to its consequence. Some grammatical errors remain, particularly with articles, agreement, and sentence construction. In “Both journey by bus or train cost,” the subject and structure need correction; “There are already sufficient amount” also has a number-agreement problem. The opening list, “Public transports like bus, train, motor vehicles,” needs more accurate article and plural forms. Review these patterns and check punctuation around longer sentences. More consistently accurate complex sentences would strengthen the response.

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