Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-15
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 gives the details about the opening date, total route's length and number of passengers per year about underground railway systems in six different cities including London, Paris, Tokyo, Washington DC, Kyoto andLos Angeles.
Overall, from the given data it has been observed that the most oldest underground railway system was London railway system, it has maximum route's leghth as compared to other cities. On the other hand, Los Angeles' undergroud railway system was the newest. In addition to that, Kyoto city has least number of passengers per year and shortest route's length as compared to other five cities.
Underground railway station of London was inaugurated in 1863 having a total route's length of 394 km. After it, railway system of Paris was opened in year 1900 with a total route of 199 km. Following the Paris, Tokyo, Washington DC, Kyoto and Los Angeles have opened their railway systems in 1927, 1976, 1981 and2001 respectively. Among all, Kyoto's route length was the lowest which accounted for only 11km.
Out ofall six Underground railway systems, total number of passengers per year was heighest of the city of Tokyo which lies at 1927 million per year follwed by Paris which accounted for 1191 million passengers per year. While Kyoto was the city with least number of passengers per year i.e 45 million only.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 6.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 6.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 6.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 6.0 |
| Overall | 6.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.5
The student successfully covers all parts of the task by selecting, reporting, and comparing the main features of the underground railway systems across the six cities. Key data points such as opening dates, route lengths, and passenger numbers are accurately identified and contrasted. For example, the student correctly highlights that London is the oldest and has the longest route, Tokyo carries the highest number of passengers, and Kyoto features the fewest passengers and shortest route length. An overview is provided in the second paragraph, capturing the main trends effectively. While there are some minor phrasing errors, all major data features are adequately addressed, meeting the requirements for a Band 7.0.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.5
The response is logically organised, beginning with an introduction, followed by an overview paragraph, and then detailed body paragraphs breaking down the statistics. Cohesive devices are used to link ideas, such as 'On the other hand', 'In addition to that', and 'While'. Paragraphing is used appropriately to separate general trends from specific data details. However, referencing and progression occasionally feel a bit mechanical or repetitive, such as the frequent use of 'as compared to other cities'. Nevertheless, the logical organisation and progression remain clear throughout, aligning well with the descriptors for Band 6.5, rounded to 7.0 for clear overall structure.
Lexical Resource — Band 6.0
The student demonstrates an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for the task, successfully using terms like 'inaugurated', 'accounted for', and 'route's length'. However, there are notable lexical errors and awkward collocations throughout the text, such as 'most oldest' (superlative error), 'leghth' (spelling error), 'undergroud' (spelling error), and 'heighest' (spelling error). While less common vocabulary is attempted, these inaccuracies prevent the score from reaching higher bands. Communication is not impeded, but the control of word formation and spelling places this response firmly at Band 6.0.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 6.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, incorporating relative clauses and participial phrases such as 'having a total route's length of 394 km' and 'follwed by Paris which accounted for 1191 million'. However, grammar and punctuation errors occur frequently, including missing articles ('the city of Tokyo', 'the most oldest'), incorrect prepositions, and spacing issues (e.g., 'andLos Angeles', 'and2001'). Despite these errors, the meaning remains clear, and a mixture of structures is successfully attempted, supporting a Band 6.0 score.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
Browse more IELTS Writing model answers or get your own writing scored by the same AI examiner.