Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · 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 5.5)
The table chart gives the information about railway network in six different cities.
Overall, Kyoto city had a smallest route and least passengers per year than others.
In London city, railway opend in 1863, route of railway was 394 kilometers and 775 millions passengers travelled per year. At the turn of the century in 1900 paris railway junction is opened. Route of the train was 199 kilometers and passengers per year travelled in train almost 1200 millions. After 28 years, in Tokyo 1927, station was opened , route of the train was 155 kilometers and most passenger travelled in train per year accounted with 1927 millions.
Over the five year period 1976 to 1981, in Washington DV and Kyoto railway station were opened. Railway station route and passenger per year were 126k kilometers and 11 kilometers, and 144 millions and 45 millions respectively. Staring in 2001, Los Angeles raliways station was opened, the route of the train was 28 kilometers and 50 millions passengers travelled in each year.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.5 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5
The response covers all the data points provided in the table, including dates, route lengths, and passenger numbers. You have successfully identified the main features, such as the oldest system (London) and the most recent (Los Angeles), as well as the extremes like Kyoto's small scale. However, the comparison is somewhat limited; while you mention Kyoto is the smallest, you could improve by grouping the cities more effectively (e.g., comparing the older European systems with the newer ones) rather than listing them chronologically. The overview is present but could be more comprehensive by highlighting the significant contrast between route length and passenger volume in cities like Tokyo.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The essay is organised into logical paragraphs, which helps the reader follow the information. You use some cohesive devices like 'After 28 years' and 'respectively', which aid flow. However, the transition between sentences is sometimes mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear (e.g., 'in Washington DV and Kyoto railway station were opened' is grammatically awkward and disrupts the flow). The progression of ideas is generally clear, but the paragraphing could be improved by grouping the data more thematically rather than just following the order of the table rows.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
You have a sufficient range of vocabulary to describe the data, such as 'railway network', 'accounted with', and 'respectively'. However, there are several instances of imprecise word choice and collocation errors, such as 'railway junction is opened' instead of 'system opened' and 'most passenger travelled' instead of 'highest number of passengers'. There are also minor spelling errors like 'opend' and 'raliways'. To reach a higher band, you should focus on using more precise terminology for data reporting and ensuring correct spelling.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The response uses a mix of simple and some complex sentence structures. However, there are frequent grammatical errors, particularly with articles ('the smallest route'), verb tense consistency ('railway opend', 'junction is opened'), and pluralisation ('1200 millions'). Some sentences are fragmented or lack necessary prepositions, such as 'accounted with 1927 millions'. While these errors do not completely impede communication, they are frequent enough to lower the score. You should focus on subject-verb agreement and the correct use of articles when discussing statistics.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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