Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-11-13

IELTS Writing Task 1 question

The take below gives information about the underground railway systems in six cities.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Underground Railway Systems

City	Date opened	Kilometers of route	Passengers per year (in millions)
London	1863	394	775
Paris	1900	199	1191
Tokyo	1927	155	1927
Washington DC	1976	126	144
Kyoto	1981	11	45
Los Angeles	2001	28	50

Student answer (Band 5.5)

he chart illustrates information about the underground railway systems in six difference cities around the world.

Overall,we can see that from the chart the highest amount of kilometers of route in the London city and the least was in the Kyoto. While most passengers per year cried by Tokyo underground railway system and the lowest was dramatically also Kyoto.

Firstly the oldest railway station was in London. Which had been opened in 1863.Although it was outdated but it had the most kilometers of route, around 394 kilometers. And 2nd oldest railway was in Washington DC.It was opened in 1976. While, it had the 3rd of railway route and 4th number of passengers they had.Approximately kilometers of route and 144 million of passengers.When, the most new and smartest railway was in Los Angeles, it was started their journey in 2001.While, it had just limited route and passengers.Like 28 kilometers of railway route and, 50 million of passengers.

Initially,the significant number of passengers had Tokyo city,around 1927 million. While 2nd number in this position was Paris. But it dramatically approximately 800 million lows than Tokyo city.And falling to again around of 400 million number of passengers had London.

Finally, there are many difference in this underground railway systems.And in the chart these six cites railway stations had many noticable, dramatically forms.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify relevant overall patterns, including London having the longest route, Kyoto the shortest, and Tokyo carrying the most passengers. You also report several figures and compare Tokyo with Paris and London. However, coverage is incomplete: Paris’s opening date and route length are omitted, and Kyoto’s and Washington’s passenger figures receive little or no clear comparison. Some details are inaccurate or confusing, such as calling Washington the “2nd oldest” system when Paris opened earlier, and saying Paris is about 800 million below Tokyo rather than giving the correct difference of 736 million. The overview is present but its comparisons need to be more precise. Select the key extremes accurately and summarise all six systems more consistently.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs, and it attempts to group information by route length and passenger numbers. This gives the reader some sense of organisation. However, progression is uneven: the first body paragraph moves between London, Washington and Los Angeles, while the next returns to passenger figures without a clear organising principle. Linking words such as “While,” “Although,” “Initially,” and “Finally” are sometimes used mechanically or do not show the intended relationship. Several sentence fragments, including “Which had been opened in 1863” and “Approximately kilometers of route and 144 million of passengers,” interrupt the flow. Grouping systems consistently by oldest/newest and highest/lowest figures would make the comparisons easier to follow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “underground railway systems,” “kilometers of route,” and “passengers per year,” and you attempt to describe rankings and contrasts. However, word choice and collocation are often inaccurate or unclear, which sometimes makes the intended meaning difficult to recover. For example, “passengers per year cried by Tokyo” does not express passenger numbers, and “the most new and smartest railway” is not an appropriate description of the newest system. “Dramatically” is also used where a neutral comparison is needed. Spelling and word-form errors such as “difference,” “cites,” and “noticable” further limit precision. Prefer standard chart language and use exact terms for increases, rankings and comparisons.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, using clauses introduced by “Although” and “While,” as well as past-tense descriptions. However, many structures are faulty, and sentence boundaries are often unclear. For instance, “Overall,we can see that from the chart the highest amount…” lacks a clear grammatical construction, while “Firstly the oldest railway station was in London. Which had been opened…” separates a relative clause from its main clause. There are also problems with articles, agreement and verb forms, as in “the most kilometers of route in the London city” and “it was started their journey.” Punctuation spacing and comma use are inconsistent. Build accurate complete sentences first, then add subordinate clauses where you can control them.

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