Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 2 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 16 · 2026-09-16

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)

AI OverviewThe advantages of driverless vehicles largely outweigh the disadvantages because they promise significantly safer roads, reduced traffic congestion, and increased productivity for passengers, despite valid concerns regarding cybersecurity risks and job displacement for professional drivers. Fully autonomous cars, buses, and trucks eliminate human errors like distraction, fatigue, and intoxication, which cause the vast majority of traffic accidents. Furthermore, automated systems optimize traffic flow and reduce energy costs, transforming travel time into a productive space where passengers can work or rest instead of steering. While society must address critical challenges such as potential cyberattacks on vehicle networks and the displacement of truck and bus drivers, the massive reduction in traffic fatalities and improved transportation efficiency provide a compelling net benefit for the future

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The student has attempted the prompt by presenting a clear position that the advantages of driverless vehicles outweigh the disadvantages, mentioning key points such as safer roads, traffic flow, productivity, cybersecurity risks, and job displacement. However, the most critical issue is that the response is drastically under-length, containing only 123 words compared to the mandatory minimum of 250 words. As a direct result of this severe under-length and the corresponding lack of extended, fully supported arguments with examples from personal knowledge or experience, the task cannot be fully developed. Consequently, the score is strictly capped at Band 4.0 according to official IELTS guidelines for under-length submissions.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5

Despite the extreme brevity of the text, the writing is structured as a single extended paragraph that flows logically. The student makes effective use of cohesive devices and transition signals such as 'Furthermore', 'While', and 'such as' to link ideas smoothly. There is a clear progression from introducing the thesis to discussing advantages, acknowledging counter-arguments, and concluding. Paragraphing conventions are not met due to the lack of multiple body paragraphs, but the internal logical arrangement of sentences is quite strong. The score reflects well-managed internal cohesion constrained by the lack of proper essay structuring.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student demonstrates a surprisingly strong and varied vocabulary range for such a short response. Examples like 'significantly safer roads', 'optimize traffic flow', 'cybersecurity risks', and 'job displacement' show precise word choice and good collocation awareness. Less common lexical items are used naturally without forcing. While there are no spelling or word choice errors, the overall lexical resource is somewhat limited in sheer volume due to the restricted length of the essay. Therefore, a solid band score of 6.0 is appropriate, reflecting an adequate-to-good range of vocabulary used with general accuracy.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

The grammatical control demonstrated in this short response is impressive. The student successfully constructs long, complex sentences containing multiple subordinate clauses, such as 'Fully autonomous cars, buses, and trucks eliminate human errors like distraction, fatigue, and intoxication, which cause the vast majority of traffic accidents.' The punctuation is accurate, and verb tenses are handled correctly throughout. The majority of the sentences are error-free, showing a wide range of grammatical structures. If the length requirement had been met, this grammatical control would have scored even higher, but the limited volume restricts the overall score.

See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.

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