Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-06

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 4.0)

After, getting the information about the underground railway systems in six cities. That was from 1863 to 2001.

Overall, the most approximately route is followed at 394 by London with 775 passengers per year (in millions). While, other respectively dropped route in case of London but Tokyo had more passengers per year approximately 1927 ( in millions ).

According to that, if we make a comparison then Tokyo was significantly higer with other 5 cities in 1927 with higher passengers per year. On the other hand we see that London was folllowed the longest route as comparing to the other cities.

So, that was a major comparison by following their information adn reporting their main features and make a relevant

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 4.0

The response fails to meet the minimum word count requirement of 150 words, which significantly impacts the ability to fully develop the task. While the student identifies some key features, such as London's route length and Tokyo's passenger numbers, the analysis is superficial and lacks a comprehensive overview. The comparison between cities is fragmented and confusing, failing to clearly highlight the trends or relationships between the date opened, route length, and passenger volume. The conclusion is incomplete, cutting off mid-sentence, which prevents a clear summary of the main features.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 4.0

The essay lacks a logical structure. The paragraphs are poorly defined, and the progression of ideas is disjointed. Cohesive devices are used incorrectly or in a mechanical fashion, such as the awkward use of 'After, getting the information' and 'According to that'. The referencing is often unclear, making it difficult for the reader to follow the comparison between the six cities. The final sentence is incomplete, which further disrupts the coherence of the response.

Lexical Resource — Band 4.0

The vocabulary is limited and often used inaccurately. Phrases like 'the most approximately route' and 'respectively dropped route' do not convey clear meaning. There is a lack of precision in describing the data, and the student struggles to use appropriate terminology for reporting statistics. Spelling errors, such as 'higer', 'folllowed', and 'adn', are present. The range of vocabulary is insufficient to demonstrate the flexibility required for higher bands.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 4.0

The grammatical control is weak throughout the response. There are frequent errors in sentence structure, such as sentence fragments ('After, getting the information...') and incorrect punctuation. The use of complex structures is attempted but results in errors that impede clarity, such as 'London was folllowed the longest route as comparing to the other cities.' Basic subject-verb agreement and preposition usage are inconsistent, and the overall lack of grammatical accuracy makes the text difficult to read.

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

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