Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-16

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 given tables provides data about the underground railway system in six differnet cities of the world.

Overall, the table cleraly depicts that London has the longest route whereas Tokyo has attracted more passengers per year. However, Kyoto has has the shortest route and attracted less passengers.

To begin, with The subway station of London opened in 1863 which had a route of 394 kilometers. Additionally, it attracted 775million passengers that years. On the other hand, Paris commenced its station in 1900 which had a route of 199 kilometers. Moreover, 1911 million passengers travelled in it. The railway station in Tokyo started in 1927. Its route covered 155 kilometers while it attracted.

In addition to this, Washington DC opened the subway station in 1976. The route was stretched to 126 kilometers while only 144 million people travelled in it. The situation in kyoto remained low as it started its station in 1981 which has route of 11 kilometers with only 45 million passengers travelled that whole year.

Finally, Los Angeles had ita own railway station in 2001. The lenght of the route was 28 kilometers and 50 million individuals travelled in it.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the main contrasts in the overview: London has the longest route, Tokyo carries the most passengers, and Kyoto is smallest by route and passenger numbers. You also include figures and opening dates for most cities. However, coverage is uneven: the Tokyo entry stops after “while it attracted,” so its key passenger figure of 1,927 million is omitted, and the Paris figure is reported as 1,911 million rather than 1,191 million. The overview also says Kyoto attracted the fewest passengers, but does not compare the newer Los Angeles system with it. To strengthen the report, check every figure against the table and ensure each city’s data is fully summarised.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure, with an overview followed by details about the six cities, and sequencing phrases such as “To begin,” “In addition to this,” and “Finally” help guide the reader. Grouping the information into paragraphs is also useful. However, the progression is somewhat mechanical, and the city-by-city listing does not consistently bring related comparisons together. Some links are unclear or awkward, such as “On the other hand” between London and Paris, where no direct contrast is explained. The incomplete Tokyo sentence interrupts the flow, while repeated “Additionally,” “Moreover,” and “while” patterns make the report feel formulaic. Use clearer comparisons and connect figures by feature, such as route length or passenger volume.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use a range of task-related vocabulary, including “route,” “passengers,” “commenced,” and “stretched,” and the reader can generally understand the intended information. However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for describing railway data. “Subway station” refers to a station rather than the whole system, and “the situation in Kyoto remained low” is vague. There are also noticeable spelling errors, including “differnet,” “cleraly,” “lenght,” and “ita,” which reduce the precision of the report. Some phrases, such as “individuals travelled in it,” are unnecessarily wordy. Prefer precise terms such as “system,” “carried,” and “route length,” and proofread spelling and collocations.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including clauses with “which” and contrasts introduced by “while.” However, control is inconsistent, and several sentence structures are faulty or incomplete. For example, “Its route covered 155 kilometers while it attracted” has no completed second clause, and “The situation in kyoto remained low as it started its station” is difficult to parse. There are also agreement and article problems in “The given tables provides” and “which has route,” as well as tense inconsistency between past reporting and “has.” Punctuation is sometimes misplaced, as in “To begin, with,” and spacing around punctuation is uneven. Build complete clauses, maintain past tense, and check subject–verb agreement and articles.

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