Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 12 · 2026-11-04

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 government should spend money to renovate existing public transport, while other believe that huge money should be spent on the construction of fastest railway lines. Although, both the perspectives have some merits, I firmly believe that public transport needs some closure.

On one hand, proponents for the renovation of public transport contends that people use public transport more often as compared to the railway line. This is primarly because they are more convenient and easy to access. For instance, people can use it for short distance when travelling to offices or to schools as it takes short routes and can be stop whereever passenger wants to reach the destination.

On the other hand, advocates of railway lines argue that money should be spend on constructing new and fastest railway lines between the cities. In particular, this will help people to travel in less span of time. For instance, it will be convenient for those individuals who wants to travel in long distance. Furthermore, it will reduce more traffic problem among the city. This is maily because public transport takes huge space in travelling on roads which causes severe traffic, railway pathway will be restricted to specific side of the road which will reduce the traffic on the roads.

In conclusion, although both the perspective have valid arguments. In my opinion, money should be spent more on the improving public transport as it approaches substantial benefits for people who travel daily to their in short distance.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You discuss both proposed uses of public money and state a preference for improving public transport, so the main parts of the prompt are addressed. The first view is supported with a relevant point about convenient short journeys to work or school; the second includes faster inter-city travel and a possible reduction in road traffic. However, these explanations remain general, and the traffic argument is not fully clear: the claim that a railway pathway would reduce congestion needs a more precise explanation. Your position is also weakened by the phrase “public transport needs some closure,” which does not clearly express your intended view. Develop each argument with a clearer explanation or example, and state your opinion consistently and precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, separate paragraphs for the two views, and a conclusion. Signposts such as “On one hand,” “On the other hand,” and “In conclusion” make the discussion easy to follow. Within paragraphs, however, progression is sometimes mechanical, with repeated “For instance” and “This is mainly because” constructions. Some references are unclear, particularly “they” in the first body paragraph, which could refer to people or public transport, and the final sentence’s reference to daily short-distance travel is awkwardly connected to the opinion. Use more varied links and make each sentence’s subject and connection to the main point explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic-related vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “construction,” “convenient,” “traffic problem,” and “travel in less span of time.” There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “proponents” and “advocates.” However, several inaccurate or unnatural choices make the writing less precise: “huge money,” “fastest railway lines,” “public transport needs some closure,” and “approaches substantial benefits.” Spelling errors such as “primarly,” “whereever,” and “maily” also reduce control. Aim for accurate collocations and forms rather than more elaborate wording; for example, describe investment as “substantial sums” and say that a service “offers significant benefits.”

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mix of simple and complex sentences, including clauses introduced by “Although,” “because,” and “which,” and the overall meaning is generally understandable. Some sentence patterns are not controlled accurately, however. For example, “other believe” needs subject–verb agreement, “people who wants” has the same issue, and “money should be spend” uses the wrong verb form. Articles and sentence construction also need attention in phrases such as “reduce more traffic problem among the city” and “although both the perspective have valid arguments.” The opening “Although” clause is punctuated as a separate sentence fragment. Review agreement, passive verb forms, articles, and punctuation, then check that each complex sentence is complete.

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