Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-09-29

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 table illustrates the information regarding underground railway systems in six cities. Table shows four major listing categories including city name, opening year, travelling route in kilometers and number of passengers who travelled through these railway routes in millions.

Looking at this data, we observe that underground railway system was opened in the city of London far before other mentioned cities. London railway system comprise of 394km long route and anually facilitate 775 million passengers.

In 19th century, four cities established their underground railway systems , Paris, Tokyo, Washington DC and Kyoto. Their route was shorter than london. Among these four cities Tokyo notably accomodates higher number of passengers per anum(1927 million) while Kyoto counts for least number(45 million) of passengers per year.

Los Angeles railway system was opened in 2001 and it was 28km long. Passengers travelled through this railway system were 50 million per year.

One continuous developmnent came in observation while looking at this data that with passing years length of route got shorter.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

The student has attempted to cover the main features of the table, noting key dates, route lengths, and passenger numbers for the cities provided. They successfully identify London as the oldest system and Tokyo as having the highest passenger volume. However, there are some inaccuracies in the reporting of data and a flawed generalisation at the end. Specifically, the student states that Tokyo was established in the '19th century' when it opened in 1927 (which is the 20th century), and they incorrectly claim that with passing years the length of the route got shorter, which is not consistently true across the dataset (e.g., Washington DC opened in 1976 with 126km, while Kyoto opened in 1981 with 11km, but Los Angeles opened in 2001 with 28km, making it longer than Kyoto). Due to these inaccuracies and a slight lack of full development in comparing all metrics, this performance aligns with Band 5.5.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response is organized into several paragraphs, following a logical introduction-body-conclusion structure. Each paragraph attempts to group cities chronologically or by specific metrics. However, the overall progression is somewhat disjointed, and cohesive devices are basic or occasionally missing. For instance, the transition between paragraphs feels abrupt, and referencing is sometimes weak, such as using 'One continuous developmnent came in observation' to introduce a conclusion. Paragraphing is present, but the logical flow between sentences within paragraphs requires tighter cohesion. These features place the response firmly in the Band 6 category.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

The student demonstrates an adequate vocabulary range for the task, successfully using terms such as 'illustrates', 'opening year', 'passengers per year', and 'notably accomodates'. However, there are noticeable spelling errors ('anually', 'anum', 'developmnent') and minor word choice issues (e.g., 'travelling route' instead of 'route length', 'counts for least number' instead of 'accounts for the lowest number'). Less common vocabulary is attempted but lacks precision, and these lexical errors occasionally distract the reader, though they do not completely impede communication. This reflects the criteria for Band 5.5.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer attempts a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, such as 'Looking at this data, we observe that underground railway system was opened...' and 'Passengers travelled through this railway system were 50 million per year.' However, control over grammar and articles is inconsistent. There are missing articles ('was opened in city of London', 'comprise of 394km long route'), spelling/typographical errors in verbs ('anually facilitate', 'accomodates'), and awkward phrasing ('Passengers travelled through this railway system were...'). The frequency of these grammatical slips places the response at a Band 5.5 level.

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

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