Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-14
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 provided table illustrates information about the underground railway systems in particular six cities.
Overall, Tokyo remained dominant in fascinating passengers per year for the undergroung railway system, followed by Paris which stood second among other categories. London marked ranked third among other cities,followed by Washington Dc, whereas Los Angeles and Kyoto jointly constitute the least combined figure of passengers visiting the underground railway per year.
A broad glance at the data reveals that the undergroung railway station of Tokyo, which opened in 1927 with 155kilometers of routes covered each year remained dominant in catering 1927 passengers per year, followed closely by Paris which opened 27 years earlier than the former city marked the second highest number of passengers of around 1191 covering 199 mileage per year.
London ranked third in catering passengers of about 775 in the year 1863covering 394 kilometers of route.Washington Dc featured considerably lower amount of passengers recorded for 144, which opened its railway lines in 1976 covering 126 miles per year.Los Angeles and Kyoto jointly constitute 45 and 50 passengers respectively opened their railway lines in the years 2001 and 1981 respectively. As, Kyoto stood least in category among all other cities, it covered 11 kilometers whereas Los Angeles covered 28 kilometers per 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 student has successfully addressed all parts of the task by reporting the main features and making relevant comparisons across the six cities. Key features such as Tokyo's exceptionally high passenger numbers and Kyoto's minimal route length are highlighted. However, there are some inaccurate interpretations of the data within the text, such as stating that Tokyo covered '155kilometers of routes covered each year' and that the route lengths represent annual figures ('covering 199 mileage per year'). Furthermore, the data for Kyoto and Los Angeles passengers are misreported as combined rather than separate figures in one sentence, and the passenger numbers for Kyoto and Los Angeles are stated as 45 and 50 passengers instead of 45 million and 50 million. Despite these data misinterpretations, the overview is clear and the main trends are presented. This performance corresponds to a Band 6.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.5
The response is organized into an introduction, an overview, and body paragraphs, providing a coherent overall arrangement. Logical progression is attempted, starting with a clear overview of the rankings. However, referencing and cohesion are sometimes faulty or mechanical. For instance, transitional phrases like 'A broad glance at the data reveals that...' are used, but the internal linking within sentences can be convoluted, such as the overly dense sentence structure in the second body paragraph. Paragraphing is present, but the grouping of data could be more logically streamlined to enhance readability. Overall, the organizational structure meets the requirements for a Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.5
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary for the task, attempting some less common lexical items such as 'dominant', 'fascinating', 'constitute', and 'catering'. However, there are noticeable inaccuracies in word choice and collocation, such as 'fascinating passengers' instead of 'attracting passengers', and omitting the word 'million' after passenger figures. Spelling errors also occur, such as 'undergroung'. While the vocabulary is sufficient to convey the general meaning, the inaccuracies and awkward collocations place this response firmly at Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5
The writer uses a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, demonstrating attempts at relative clauses and participial phrases (e.g., 'which opened in 1927...', 'followed closely by Paris which opened...'). However, there are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation, particularly missing commas before relative clauses and awkward dangling modifiers or confused phrasing (e.g., 'As, Kyoto stood least in category among all other cities, it covered 11 kilometers...'). While these errors do not completely impede communication, they recur frequently enough to prevent the writing from achieving a higher band score. This warrants a Band 5.5.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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