Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-25

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 compares six cities in term of when their underground railway station opened, the length of their routes in kilometers and the number of passengers they carry each year.

Overall, London has the oldest and longest underground system, while Tokyo carries the highest number of passengers annually despite having a much shorter network. In contrast, the system in Kyoto and Los Angeles are both relatively new and small.

Looking at the details, the underground system of London opened in 1863, spans around 394 kilometers and carrying 775 million passengers per year. In case of Paris, it opened in 1900 with 199 kilometers of routes and actually serves more passengers at 1191 million. The system of Tokyo opened in 1927, is only 155 kilometers long but has the highest ridership at 1927 million per year.

The other three cities have much newer systems. Washington DC opened in 1976 with 126 kilometers and 144 million passengers. The network of Kyoto opened in 1981 is the smallest at just 11 kilometer and 45 million passengers. While the station of Los Angeles opened in 2001, has 28 kilometers of routes and carries 50 million passengers annually.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 7.0

The response effectively addresses all parts of the task. You have successfully identified the key features, such as London having the oldest and longest system, and Tokyo having the highest ridership despite a shorter route. The data is accurately reported, and the comparisons between the older, larger systems and the newer, smaller ones are clear. The overview is well-constructed and provides a good summary of the main trends. To reach a higher band, ensure that you consistently use precise terminology; for example, referring to the 'underground railway system' rather than 'underground railway station' when discussing the network as a whole.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5

The response is logically organized with a clear progression of ideas. You have used paragraphing effectively to separate the overview from the detailed analysis. Cohesive devices such as 'In contrast', 'Looking at the details', and 'While' are used appropriately to guide the reader. The flow between sentences is generally smooth. To improve further, ensure that referencing is precise; for instance, in the final paragraph, the sentence 'While the station of Los Angeles opened in 2001, has 28 kilometers...' is grammatically fragmented and lacks a clear subject-verb connection to the previous clause, which slightly disrupts the cohesion.

Lexical Resource — Band 6.0

You have used a sufficient range of vocabulary to convey the information clearly. Terms like 'ridership', 'annually', and 'network' are used correctly. There are some minor inaccuracies, such as using 'station' to refer to the entire railway system, which is a slight misuse of terminology. Additionally, 'in term of' should be 'in terms of'. While the vocabulary is adequate for the task, incorporating more sophisticated collocations or varied synonyms for 'opened' or 'carries' would help demonstrate a wider, more flexible range of lexical items.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The response demonstrates a mix of simple and complex sentence structures. You have successfully used relative clauses and comparative structures. However, there are several grammatical slips, such as 'spans around 394 kilometers and carrying 775 million' (should be 'and carries') and 'In case of Paris' (should be 'In the case of'). There is also a missing subject in the final sentence: 'While the station of Los Angeles opened in 2001, has 28 kilometers...' should be 'While the system in Los Angeles opened in 2001, it has 28 kilometers...'. These errors do not impede communication but occur frequently enough to limit the score.

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

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