Band 5.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-06

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 table compares the information about the train systems in six different cities of the world. These cities belong to first world countries and these cities are London, Paris, Tokyo, Washington DC, and Kyoto.

Overall, the railway system in London was the first opened railway system and its route was the longest as compared to other five cities. On the other hand, Kyoto railway system has smallest route and Kyoto has lowest number of passengers per year.

Firstly, the London railway system was the first opened railway in 1863, and it had longest route slightly lower than 400 km. On the one hand, Kyoto opened in 1981, and it has smallest routh of only 11 km therefore , it has minimal number of passengers. These are 45 millions per year.

Secondly, Los Angeles railway opened in the last in 2001, it had 28 k o route. While passengers traveling on this railway are only 50 millions. Whereas, Tokyo railway has significant number of passengers and this is 1927 millions and it was opened in 1927.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

The response addresses the task only partially, as some information is omitted and the reporting of key features is limited. While the student attempts to provide an overview and mention several cities from the table, details for Paris and Washington DC are completely missed in the body paragraphs. Furthermore, the selection of data is sometimes repetitive, and the ideas presented are under-developed rather than fully extended. To reach a higher level, the student would need to cover all categories presented in the table comprehensively and ensure that all major trends and comparisons—such as contrasting passenger volumes against route lengths across all cities—are fully explored.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

There is some organisation in the response, but it lacks a clear overall progression. The writer attempts to structure the essay using an overview paragraph followed by body paragraphs marked by sequencing devices like 'Firstly' and 'Secondly'. However, the logical flow is disrupted because Paris and Washington DC are omitted from the detailed paragraphs after being mentioned in the introduction. Additionally, cohesive devices are sometimes mechanical or repetitive, and referencing is occasionally unclear, such as when specific figures like 'These are 45 millions per year' are abruptly introduced. Improving the logical connection between sentences and ensuring balanced paragraph structure would enhance coherence.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

The vocabulary used is limited and minimally adequate for the task. The student relies on basic terms and repeats words like 'railway system', 'opened', and 'route' frequently throughout the text. There are also noticeable lexical errors and awkward collocations, such as 'smallest routh' and 'first opened railway system' instead of 'earliest underground system'. While the vocabulary chosen is sufficient to convey basic facts from the table, the range is restricted, and occasional word-choice and spelling errors cause some difficulty for the reader. Incorporating a wider variety of synonyms and precise topic-specific terminology is necessary to elevate this criterion.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

The writer demonstrates a limited range of sentence structures, relying mostly on simple sentences alongside some attempts at complex forms that are often faulty. There are frequent errors in grammar and punctuation that can cause difficulty, such as missing articles ('has smallest routh'), punctuation errors ('therefore , it has'), and awkward phrasing like 'railway opened in the last in 2001, it had 28 k o route'. While the mixture of simple and complex forms is visible, the persistence of basic grammatical inaccuracies and awkward clause connections holds the writing back. Greater control over complex sentence patterns and careful proofreading for articles and prepositions would lead to a stronger grammatical performance.

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