Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-20

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 6.0)

The table gives information about underground railway system in si cities. It comperes them in terms of the date they opened, the lenghth of their routes and the number of passangers per year.

Overall, London has the oldest and longest underground railway system, while Los Angeles has the newest one. Tokyo has the highest number of passengers. Whereas, Tokyo has lowest.

Looking at the table in detail, London's underground railway opened in 1863 and has the longest route, at 394 kilometers. It carries about 775 million passenger each year. Paris opened in 1900 and has a route of 199 kilometers, with 1,191 million passengers annually. Tokyo started in 1927 and has 155 kilometers of route. However, it has the highest passenger number, at 1,927 million per year.

The systems in Washington DC, Kyoto and Los Angeles are newer. Whington DC has 126 kilometers of route and 144 million passengers. Kyoto has the shortest route, at only 11 kilometers, and 45 million passengers. Los Angeles opened in 2001 and has 28 kilometers of route,

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response — Band 6.0

The student covers all parts of the task well by reporting the main features of the table, including dates opened, route lengths, and annual passenger numbers. Key comparisons are successfully made, such as identifying London as having the oldest and longest system, and Tokyo as having the highest passenger volume. However, there is a minor contradiction and typographical error in the overview where the writer states 'Tokyo has the highest number of passengers. Whereas, Tokyo has lowest,' which appears to be a slip of the pen intended for Kyoto. Despite this minor lapse, the main features and comparisons are clearly presented and supported by data from the table.

Coherence and Cohesion — Band 6.0

The response is organized into logical paragraphs, starting with an introduction and overview, followed by detailed body paragraphs. Cohesive devices such as 'Overall', 'Looking at the table in detail', and 'However' are used to guide the reader through the data. Paragraphing is generally appropriate, grouping older and newer systems together. However, referencing and sentence structures in the overview show some mechanical linking, particularly with the fragmented sentence 'Whereas, Tokyo has lowest.', which slightly disrupts the smooth progression of ideas.

Lexical Resource — Band 5.5

The student uses an adequate range of vocabulary suitable for describing statistical data, including terms like 'underground railway system', 'date opened', 'route', and 'annually'. There are, however, several spelling and vocabulary errors, such as 'si' instead of 'six', 'comperes' instead of 'compares', 'lenghth' instead of 'length', and 'passangers' instead of 'passengers'. While these errors do not impede communication, they reflect a Band 6 level where spelling and word-choice inaccuracies are present.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy — Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, using relative clauses and contrasting conjunctions effectively in places. There are several grammatical and mechanical errors, including spelling mistakes and an incomplete final sentence ('Los Angeles opened in 2001 and has 28 kilometers of route,'). Furthermore, punctuation and sentence boundary issues appear, such as the fragment 'Whereas, Tokyo has lowest.' Despite these errors, the majority of the sentences communicate the intended meaning clearly, placing this response comfortably at Band 6.

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

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