Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-07

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 6.5)

The table given displays information about the underground railway systems in 6 different cities around the world. Overall, it is quite evident that the older railway systems prove to be the ones used the most each year, including those in London, Tokyo and Paris.

The underground railway systems of London, Paris and Tokyo are relatively decades old compared to the other systems given. London's was opened back in 1863 and posseses the longest route out of all the other systems at nearly 400 kilometers, followed by Paris's railways revealed about 40 decades later covering 199 kilometers of route. Though Tokyo's system is relatively newer and accommodates a shorter route, sitting at 155 kilometers, it carries the greatest number of passengers per year compared to the other systems mentioned. Annually, it transports nearly 2000 million people. Out of these three, London's railways accommodate the fewest number of passengers barely scrapping 800 million.

Conversely, the other three systems in Washington DC, Kyoto and Los Angeles respectively have only been introduced recently. Washington DC's was open to the public by 1976 and had decent coverage of about 126 kilometers. However, it only withstood 144 million passengers per annum. Los Angeles's railways are the newest out of the bunch and was opened in the 21st century with little coverage of about 30 kilometers and only 50 million passengers per year. Lastly, Kyoto's system covers the smallest route of only 11 kilometers and is therefore used the least compared to the other systems displayed.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5

You have successfully identified the main features and made relevant comparisons between the cities. You provided a clear overview and supported your points with data from the table. However, there is a minor factual error in your interpretation: you stated Paris opened '40 decades' after London, which is 400 years, whereas the actual difference is 37 years. Additionally, the statement that older systems are used the most is a good generalisation, but you could have more explicitly contrasted the high passenger numbers in Tokyo with the low numbers in newer cities like Kyoto to strengthen the analysis.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 7.0

The response is logically organized with a clear introduction, body paragraphs, and a concluding summary. You use cohesive devices such as 'Conversely', 'However', and 'Lastly' effectively to guide the reader through the comparisons. Paragraphing is used appropriately to group the older and newer systems. The progression of ideas is smooth, and the referencing is generally clear, although the transition between the discussion of the three older cities and the three newer ones could be slightly more refined to improve the flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You demonstrate a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey information with precision. Phrases like 'accommodates a shorter route' and 'transports nearly 2000 million people' are used effectively. There are some minor inaccuracies in word choice, such as 'withstood' (which is not the best fit for passenger numbers) and 'scrapping' (which should be 'scraping'). Despite these, the vocabulary is adequate for the task and allows for clear communication of the data provided in the table.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as the use of 'though' and 'while' clauses. There are some grammatical slips, such as 'posseses' (spelling error), 'was open' (should be 'opened'), and 'railways... was opened' (subject-verb agreement error). While these errors are present, they do not impede the reader's understanding of the information. To reach a higher band, ensure consistent subject-verb agreement and check for minor spelling errors in your final review.

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