Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-12
IELTS Writing Task 2 question
In the future all cars, buses and trucks will be driverless. The only people travelling inside these vehicles will be passengers.
Do you think the advantages of driverless vehicles outweigh the disadvantages?
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Student answer (Band 5.5)
In the upcoming years, all the vehicles including cars, buses, and trucks will be driven automatically. Only the passengers will be sitting in the vehicles. Although, this advancement will lead to significant decrease in the number of road accidents, the unemployment rate among the drivers will also increase sharply. In my perspective, its drawback is heavier than its benefit.
As the world is moving to advancements in technology, vehicles are now becoming driverless, which will decrease the mean rise in road accidents significantly. This will be quite eco-friendly because there will be no rush and speed limits will not be exceeded by the automated cars. For instance, now-a-days traffic congestions are rising every moment, especially due to lack of awareness of driving rules. On the other hand, these rules will be added in the programs of automatic cars. So, the number of road accidents will be dropped considerably. Therefore, in order to maintain an eco-friendly environment, the cars will be automated in the nearby future.
However, the employment prospects of drivers will worsen due this technology. If the cars will be driven without drivers, there will be no need of such people to drive the cars. People will prefer automated cars and, therefore, job opportunities will be devastated for drivers. For this reason, these types of vehicles will not need any drivers for them. All in all, if the cars will be modified in such a way, they will replace human drivers.
To sum, this modification in vehicles will reduce mis happenings on the roads, but it will be a devastating experience for drivers. As far as I am concerned, its drawbacks outweigh its disadvantages.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response addresses all parts of the prompt by discussing both the advantages and disadvantages of driverless vehicles, ultimately taking a clear position that the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. The introduction outlines the writer's stance directly, and body paragraphs present ideas regarding road safety, environmental impact, and driver unemployment. However, some arguments lack deep development and are slightly repetitive, particularly in the third paragraph where the point about job losses is reiterated without adding new supporting evidence. Furthermore, the final sentence of the conclusion contains a slight contradiction by stating 'its drawbacks outweigh its disadvantages' instead of the intended 'disadvantages outweigh its advantages', though the overall position remains understandable. These limitations place the performance at a solid Band 6.0 level.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay displays a generally coherent overall arrangement with a clear paragraph-by-paragraph structure containing an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a conclusion. Cohesive devices such as 'Although', 'For instance', 'On the other hand', and 'Therefore' are employed to connect ideas, though some are used somewhat mechanically or repetitively. Referencing is mostly clear, and the logical progression flows adequately from the benefits discussed in paragraph two to the drawbacks in paragraph three. Paragraphing is utilised appropriately to separate main ideas. While the flow could be smoother and more sophisticated, the organisational structure meets the requirements for a Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, successfully incorporating terms such as 'advancement', 'eco-friendly', 'traffic congestions', and 'employment prospects'. There are some attempts to use less common vocabulary, though this occasionally results in unnatural collocations or minor word choice inaccuracies, such as 'significant decrease' where 'a significant decrease' is needed, or 'mis happenings' instead of 'accidents' or 'mishaps'. Spelling is generally accurate throughout the essay. The lexical range is sufficient to communicate the main ideas clearly, aligning well with the descriptors for a Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response features a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating control over basic structures and attempting complex arrangements with conditional clauses such as 'If the cars will be driven without drivers...'. However, there are noticeable grammatical errors, particularly with verb tenses and auxiliary verbs in conditional sentences (e.g., 'If the cars will be driven' instead of 'If cars are driven', and 'due this technology' missing a preposition). Punctuation is generally acceptable, and while these errors persist, they rarely impede communication or prevent the reader from following the core arguments. This performance is characteristic of a Band 6.0.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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