Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-05

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 6.0)

The table compares underground railway systems in six cities in terms of their opening dates, route lengths, and annual passenger numbers.

Overall, London has the oldest and most extensive network, while Tokyo carries the highest number of passengers in a year. In contrast newer systems such as Kyoto and Los Angeles has the least number of passengers travelled and smaller route.

Despite having the oldest railway system London has the longest route of 394 kilometers with 775 million passengers annually. Paris is the second oldest railway system opened in 19 century having a route of 199 kilometers serving 1191 million passengers per year.

Tokyo's system began it's operation in 1927 , handles the highest passenger volume amongst all six cities accounting for 1927 million passengers within a year. Washington DC opening in 1976 has a moderate network of 126 kilometers and serves 144 million passengers.

In comparison, Kyoto and Los Angeles have the smallest railway system and most recently developed railway system . With a route of 11 kilometers and 28 kilometers respectively and they also record for the lowest passenger numbers among the six cities, at 45 million and 50 million annually.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The response effectively covers all requirements of the task. You have successfully identified the main features, such as London's status as the oldest and longest system, and Tokyo's high passenger volume. Comparisons are made throughout, particularly when contrasting the older, larger systems with the newer, smaller ones like Kyoto and Los Angeles. The overview is clear and provides a good summary of the data. To reach a higher band, ensure that all data points are presented with complete accuracy; for instance, you mentioned Paris opened in the '19 century' rather than 1900, which is a minor inaccuracy in reporting the specific data provided.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized with a clear introduction, overview, and body paragraphs that group the cities effectively. The progression of ideas is smooth, moving from the oldest/largest systems to the newest/smallest ones. Cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'Despite having', and 'In comparison' are used appropriately to link ideas. However, paragraphing could be slightly more refined; for example, the final paragraph contains a sentence fragment ('...and most recently developed railway system.') that disrupts the flow. Overall, the structure is clear and easy to follow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the information clearly. Terms like 'extensive network', 'passenger volume', and 'annually' are used correctly. There are some minor issues with word choice and collocation, such as 'record for the lowest passenger numbers' (should be 'record the lowest') and 'handles the highest passenger volume' (which is good, but could be more varied). The vocabulary is adequate for the task, but incorporating more precise academic collocations would elevate the response to a higher band.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response uses a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. While the meaning is always clear, there are several grammatical errors that persist. For example, 'newer systems such as Kyoto and Los Angeles has' (subject-verb agreement error: should be 'have'), 'began it's operation' (incorrect use of apostrophe: should be 'its'), and the sentence fragment in the final paragraph. Punctuation is generally functional, but there are some inconsistent spaces before commas. Increasing the frequency of error-free complex sentences would improve this score.

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

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