Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-19
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 5.0)
The four coloumed table provides data regarding the railway syestem in six cities beneath the Earth's surface.
Overall, Tokyo was the most busy city in case of railways, while railway in Paris opened before that of Tokyo, but yearly usage is less. Moreover, large cities like London and Washington DC's combined railway usage is less than a billion. while, Kyoto and Loss Angles made combine usage less than 100 million.
In London, the undergroung railway was opened in 1863 and travelled 394 kilometers in routine and 775 million individuals used it yearly. In case of Paris, rails were introduced in 1900 and traveled 199 kilimeters daily and nearly 1.2 billion people travelled anualy. Tokyo introduced railways beneath Earth's surface in 1927 and it occupies a distance of 155 kilometers daily and almost 2 billion people used it to travel.
Washington DC's railway beneath roads was opened in 1976 was daily travel was 126 kilometers, whereas 144 million people travelled by it. In 1981, Kyoto
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.0 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 5.0
The student attempts to address the task by summarizing the main features of the table, including dates of operation, route lengths, and passenger numbers. An overview is provided in the second paragraph, which attempts to highlight general trends such as Tokyo being the busiest city. However, there are notable omissions and inaccuracies in reporting the data. For instance, the student states that the table gives data regarding the railway system 'beneath the Earth's surface' (which is an inaccurate generalisation since not all systems are exclusively underground) and mistakes the route length as a daily travel distance ('traveled 394 kilometers in routine' and 'occupies a distance of 155 kilometers daily'). Furthermore, the response trails off incompletely at the end ('In 1981, Kyoto'). These limitations place the response at a Band 5.
Coherence and Cohesion — Band 5.0
The response exhibits some organization with an introductory paragraph, an overview, and subsequent body paragraphs attempting to detail individual cities. However, overall progression is hindered by abrupt transitions and faulty cohesive devices. Words like 'Moreover' and 'while' are used inappropriately to link contrasting ideas, resulting in disjointed sentences (e.g., 'while, Kyoto and Loss Angles made combine usage less than 100 million'). Paragraphing is incomplete, as the final paragraph cuts off mid-sentence without concluding the information for Kyoto and Los Angeles. Referencing is sometimes unclear, and the mechanical use of cohesive devices prevents a smooth flow of information, aligning with a Band 5.
Lexical Resource — Band 5.0
The vocabulary used is limited and contains numerous spelling and word-choice errors that impede communication in places. Examples of misspellings and inappropriate lexical choices include 'coloumed' (columned), 'syestem' (system), 'Loss Angles' (Los Angeles), 'routine' instead of route, and 'anualy' (annually). The student attempts some less common vocabulary such as 'combined' and 'usage', but persistent errors in basic spelling and collocation restrict the score. The misunderstanding of the table's categories (treating kilometers of route as daily travel distance) also reflects lexical and interpretive inadequacy. This performance fits the Band 5 descriptor.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, but these attempts are frequently faulty. There are recurrent grammatical errors, such as subject-verb agreement issues, incorrect prepositions, and awkward phrasing (e.g., 'Tokyo was the most busy city in case of railways', 'Washington DC's railway beneath roads was opened in 1976 was daily travel was 126 kilometers'). Punctuation is also weak, with missing commas and incomplete clauses. The high frequency of grammatical errors and the unfinished final sentence cause significant difficulty for the reader, matching the Band 5 level.
See this exact question answered at other band scores — the same prompt compared across bands.
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