Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-27
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 information in terms of millions, kilometers and years regarding the system of underearthed railway in six numerous urban regions is depicted by the table chart.
From an overall perspective, it is evident that Tokyo witnessed the highest passenger rate as compared to other cities; however the lowest figures were recorded in Kyoto's case.
As can be seen, in London, a line of 394 kilometers was lied for carrying 775 million passengers a year in the year 1863. After 37 years, an almost 200 kilometer distanced railway path was established in the Paris, where 11,91,000,00 passengers were travelling by underground trains anually. Then, in 1927, not only 1927 millions travellers were using 155 kilometer long rail-lines in Tokyo, but it was also the highest of all time.
Furthermore, in Washington DC, in 1976, a 126 kilometer of route was opened, which was utilized by 144 millions seaters, followed by after half a decade, only 11 kilometer railway line- which was least distanced line from others-was made in Kyoto, which was opted by only 45 million passengers. Moreover, in Los angeles, 5 million more passengers than Kyoto were commuting on 28 kiliometer distanced railway route, which was built in 2001.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 5.5 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 5.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.5 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 5.5 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5
The candidate provides a clear overview of the data, highlighting key extremes such as Tokyo having the highest passenger numbers and Kyoto having the lowest figures. Main features of the table are selected and reported, including details regarding dates opened, route lengths, and passenger numbers. Comparisons are made across the cities, for instance noting that Los Angeles had 5 million more passengers than Kyoto. While the summary covers all parts of the prompt well, there are occasional inaccuracies in reporting specific figures (such as writing '11,91,000,00' and '1927 millions travellers' where the data indicates 1,191 million and 1,927 million respectively). This places the response comfortably at Band 6.0, as it addresses all parts of the task and presents a clear overview, though with some minor data misrepresentations.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5
The response is arranged logically with an introduction, an overview paragraph, and two body paragraphs detailing the specific cities chronologically and geographically. Cohesive devices are used to link ideas, such as 'From an overall perspective', 'As can be seen', 'Furthermore', and 'Moreover'. However, some cohesive referencing is slightly mechanical or awkward, and paragraphing could be structured more cleanly. Paragraph four becomes overly dense with multiple dates and clauses connected by 'followed by after half a decade', which impacts the natural flow. Overall, the organization is coherent, satisfying the requirements for a Band 6.0.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.5
The student attempts a range of vocabulary, using terms like 'urban regions', 'witnessed', 'established', and 'commuting'. However, there are several noticeable lexical errors and awkward word formations, such as 'underearthed railway', 'passenger rate', 'distanced railway path', and 'seaters' instead of passengers. There are also formatting issues with numbers ('11,91,000,00'). While the vocabulary is adequate to convey the basic message, the frequent word choice errors and lack of precision in handling numerical data prevent the score from rising above Band 5.5.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The student attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence structures, including relative clauses and comparative forms ('as compared to other cities; however the lowest figures were recorded'). However, grammatical control is inconsistent. There are several structural and morphological errors, such as 'a line of 394 kilometers was lied' (incorrect past participle of lie/lay), 'in the Paris' (unnecessary article), and run-on sentence structures overloaded with modifiers. Punctuation and phrasing errors frequently occur in complex sentences. Because errors are noticeable and can occasionally cause confusion for the reader, a score of 5.0 is appropriate.
See this exact question answered at other band scores. The same prompt compared across bands.
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