Band 4.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 4.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-11

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 4.5)

The table illustrte the data of the underground railway system in the several cities in the world such as London, Paris Tokyo, Washington DC, Kyoto and Los Angeles.

Overall, it is clear that london underground railway system was oldest, which opned since 1863, while the underground train system was earlest, opened at 2001. In addition, London railyway system was singnificant longer route around 394 km, in contrast the lowest passengers per years around 45 million in Kyoto undergroud Railwys Sysytem.

Initially, London Undergroud Railway System opend 1863, and Paris in 1900, Tokyo in 1927, Washington DC in 1976, Kyoto in 1981, and Los Angeles in 2001.

Turning to kilometers of routes, london was

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 3.5

You identify the table’s subject and include the six cities, and you attempt an overview by noting that London’s system is the oldest and has the longest route. However, the overview contains a major factual error: the system opened in 2001 is the newest, not the “earlest,” and Kyoto has the fewest passengers, not merely a low figure without comparison. The response also stops before reporting the route lengths or passenger figures for most cities, so the key comparisons are largely missing. It is 37 words below the required minimum, which contributes to the limited coverage. To improve, give an accurate overview and select the most important contrasts across all three measures, supported by figures.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 4.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure: an introduction, an overview, and a paragraph beginning to list opening dates. Phrases such as “Overall” and “Turning to” signal the intended stages of the report. However, progression is incomplete because the final paragraph ends abruptly at “london was,” leaving the route-length comparison unfinished and no passenger comparison. The opening-date list is also presented as a sequence rather than being integrated into a clear comparison. Some linking is awkward, as in “in contrast the lowest passengers per years,” and the overview’s comparisons are difficult to follow. Organise the body into complete sections, group related figures, and use clear comparison links to guide the reader.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some task-relevant vocabulary, including “underground railway system,” “route,” “passengers,” and “opened,” and you attempt comparative language such as “oldest” and “longer.” This gives the response a minimally adequate vocabulary base for describing the table. However, spelling errors are frequent and noticeable, including “illustrte,” “opned,” “singnificant,” and “undergrond,” while several phrases are imprecise or unnatural, such as “the data of … in the several cities” and “lowest passengers per years.” These errors sometimes make the intended meaning harder to interpret. Learn accurate forms of key terms and use standard collocations, for example, “annual passenger numbers” and “the shortest route,” rather than assembling comparisons word by word.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt a few sentence forms, including a complex overview with “while” and a comparison introduced by “in contrast.” The opening-date list also shows an effort to report several data points in one sentence. However, grammatical control is inconsistent: “the table illustrate” has subject–verb disagreement, and “London underground railway system was oldest” is missing an article. The clause “which opned since 1863” uses an unsuitable tense and construction; “opened in 1863” would be clearer. The phrase “London … opend 1863” also lacks the preposition “in.” Most sentences are simple or list-like, and the final sentence is incomplete. Practise accurate past-tense reporting and complete comparative sentences before adding more complex structures.

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