Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-08-26

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 given table shows data about six cities and their underground railway systems. It also includes the information of the opening date of railways, distance and passengers travelled per year.

The data clearly mentions that the oldest and probably the first undergraound railway was inaugrated in 1863 in London which had 394 kilometers long route and it took an average of 775 million passengers per year. The railway system in Paris was inaugrated in 1900 while Tokyo opened it in 1927. They both had the distance of about 200 and 150 kilometers respectively. But these two cities has on an average 1500 passengers per year which is maximum of all the six cities. To be precise, Tokyo has 1927 passengers which makes it the highest passengers boarding city while Paris has 1191.

As can be seen from the chart, Kyoto and Los Angeles has similar number of passengers using the underground rail which is nearly 50 count. The Los Angeles railway has a distance of 28 kilometers which is almost thrice as Kyoto. The Kyoto railway was started in 1981 while the Los Angeles was started exactly 2 decades later. However, Washington DC was opened in 1976 with average passenger count of 144 per year which is almost twice as Kyoto and Angeles.

To sum it up, the six cities inaugrated their railway system in different years but the progress sone by Tokyo is maximum and by Kyoto is minimum based on the passengers thay board.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.5

The response covers all key features of the table, including the oldest/newest systems and the highest/lowest passenger counts. You have successfully identified the main trends and made relevant comparisons, such as contrasting the older systems in London and Paris with the newer ones in Kyoto and Los Angeles. However, there are some inaccuracies in data interpretation; for instance, you state that Paris and Tokyo have '1500 passengers', which is not supported by the table. Additionally, the summary at the end is slightly vague. To improve, ensure that all figures are transcribed accurately and that comparisons are precise.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The essay is logically organized into paragraphs, with an introduction, two body paragraphs, and a summary. The progression of ideas is generally clear, moving from the oldest systems to the newest. You use some cohesive devices like 'however', 'to be precise', and 'as can be seen from the chart' to link ideas. However, some transitions feel a bit mechanical, and the referencing is occasionally unclear, such as when you refer to '1500 passengers' without clearly explaining the calculation or source. Improving the variety of linking words would help the flow.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

You demonstrate an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, using terms like 'inaugurated', 'route', and 'boarding'. However, there are several spelling errors, such as 'undergraound', 'inaugrated', and 'thay'. Furthermore, there are some word choice issues, such as 'progress sone by Tokyo' (should be 'achieved') and 'passengers boarding city'. While these errors do not prevent the reader from understanding the main points, they do limit the score. Focusing on accurate spelling and more precise collocations would elevate your writing.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, such as 'The data clearly mentions that...' and 'The Kyoto railway was started in 1981 while the Los Angeles was started...'. There are some grammatical errors, including subject-verb agreement issues like 'Kyoto and Los Angeles has' (should be 'have') and 'these two cities has' (should be 'have'). Additionally, there are minor errors with articles and prepositions. While these errors are noticeable, they rarely impede communication. To reach a higher band, focus on consistent subject-verb agreement and refining complex sentence structures.

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

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