Band 4.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer
Overall Band Score: 4.0 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-10
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 4.0)
As the given table portrays the information about the underground railway system in six cities. We can observe that the maximum amount of passangers travelled to tokyo (Japan) in comparison with the kyoto city of africa . Moreover the ratio between these both cities is 1927:45 . However at early times also many passangers visited london in 1863 nearly about 775 passangers visited 394 kilometers of route to reach their destiny.
AI examiner evaluation
| Criterion | Band |
|---|---|
| Task Achievement / Task Response | 3.0 |
| Coherence and Cohesion | 3.5 |
| Lexical Resource | 5.0 |
| Grammatical Range and Accuracy | 5.0 |
| Overall | 4.0 |
Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.0
The response identifies a relevant overall feature: Tokyo has the highest annual passenger figure, and it compares Tokyo with Kyoto. It also mentions London’s opening year, route length and passenger total. However, the summary is very incomplete: it omits Paris, Washington DC and Los Angeles, and gives no overview of the systems’ contrasting ages, route lengths or passenger numbers across all six cities. The comparison of Tokyo and Kyoto is not developed beyond a ratio, and the London detail is unclear. The required minimum of 150 words is not met, which further limits the coverage. To improve, report the main extremes and make several accurate comparisons using data from the full table.
Coherence and Cohesion: Band 3.5
There is a basic sequence from a general introduction to a comparison of Tokyo and Kyoto, followed by a point about London. Linking expressions such as “Moreover” and “However” show an attempt to connect ideas. However, the response is only one paragraph and does not develop a clear progression through the table; the shift from Tokyo and Kyoto to London is abrupt, and “these both cities” has an unclear reference. The opening is also a sentence fragment, which makes the start less coherent. Organise the response into an overview and a paragraph of selected comparisons, and use linking words only where the relationship between points is clear.
Lexical Resource: Band 5.0
The response uses some task-relevant vocabulary, including “underground railway system,” “passengers,” “ratio,” and “kilometers of route,” so the topic is generally recognisable. However, the range is limited and several choices are inaccurate or unnatural: “passangers” is misspelled, “destiny” does not fit the intended meaning of a journey’s destination, and “maximum amount of passengers travelled to Tokyo” is an awkward way to describe annual ridership. “Kyoto city of africa” is also factually and geographically inappropriate. Use precise table language such as “annual passenger numbers,” “route length,” and “the highest figure,” and check spelling and collocations carefully.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0
The response attempts a complex opening with “As the given table portrays…,” and includes a comparative sentence and a past-tense clause about London. However, the opening is a dependent clause without a main clause, so it is a sentence fragment. There are also problems with articles and number agreement in “the kyoto city,” “these both cities,” and “775 passangers visited 394 kilometers of route.” The final sentence does not clearly express the relationship between passengers and route length. Most of the writing relies on simple sentence patterns, with limited accurate control of more complex structures. Build complete sentences with a clear subject and verb, and check articles, plurals and how figures are connected grammatically.
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