Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Barron's Writing · 2026-10-19

IELTS Writing Task 2 question

In many parts of the world, people rely on private cars for transportation.

In what ways does reliance on private cars affect the way we live?

Do the effects tend to be positive or negative?

Give reasons for your answer, and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.

Student answer (Band 5.5)

People are more dependent on private cars as means of transportation in number of areas of the world. Reliance on private cars affect environment by more traffic and by creating more pollution. According to me this effect tend to be negative. I will explain my answer in the below paragraphs with relevant examples.

One and a foremost reason is, traffic congestion due to more reliance on their own cars as compared to public transit. If people use cars for every single small occasions then roads get congested due to more vehicles on road. For example, many people nowadays using their vehicles for small purposes even if they wants to go to buy one thing from store which leads to more traffic and people who has meetings or urgently needs to go somewhere they could be late due to this reason. Although, more cars on the road could block emergency vehicles also. For instance, if ambulance is on the same road with heartattack patient it cannot reach to the hospital on time which leads to patient death and this is the main negative impact of more cars.

Another downside is environmental pollution because of more vehicles on the road there would be more pollution. Moreover, public transportation will become less available if everybody will drive their own and it can create for the pupils who are not reach wants to travel through public transport.

In conclusion, reliaing more on private cars rather than public transportation has more negative effects like traffic congestion, pollution and many more.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

Your position is clear: you consider reliance on private cars mainly negative, and you identify congestion and pollution as effects on daily life. The congestion paragraph includes relevant examples, such as delays for people with meetings and ambulances. However, the response only partly develops the task: the pollution point is asserted rather than explained, and the claim that public transport becomes less available is unclear and unsupported. The prompt asks how car reliance affects the way people live, so explain these effects more fully—for example, how commuting time, health, or access to services changes—and support each main point with a clear example. This would make the response more complete and developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an introduction, two body paragraphs and a conclusion, and the main ideas generally follow a sensible order. Linking expressions such as “For example,” “Moreover,” and “In conclusion” help signal relationships between points. However, some connections are mechanical or unclear. The second body paragraph moves from pollution to public transport without explaining how the ideas relate, and “it can create for the pupils…” leaves the reader unsure what problem is meant. The first body paragraph also combines congestion, lateness and emergency access in a long sequence. Use clearer topic sentences and separate distinct effects into well-connected explanations so progression is easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use enough topic vocabulary to communicate the main ideas, including “traffic congestion,” “public transit,” “environmental pollution” and “emergency vehicles.” These terms are relevant, but the range is limited and several phrases are inaccurate or unnatural, which sometimes makes the meaning difficult to follow. For example, “small occasions” does not clearly express short or minor trips, while “not reach” appears to mean people who cannot afford or access cars. “Reliaing” is also misspelled, and “heartattack patient” is not correctly formed. Aim for more precise collocations and check spelling and word forms. More accurate vocabulary would help you explain the effects on different groups and daily routines.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and complex sentences, including conditional structures such as “If people use cars…” and a relative clause in “people who has meetings.” However, errors are frequent, and some sentences are difficult to understand. Subject–verb agreement is inconsistent: “Reliance … affect” should use a singular verb, and “people who has” should be “people who have.” There are also problems with verb forms and sentence construction, as in “many people nowadays using their vehicles” and “if everybody will drive their own.” The final clause of the second body paragraph is especially unclear. Practise accurate present-tense patterns and build longer sentences around one clear main clause, checking agreement and punctuation.

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