Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-19

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 compares six cities in terms of opening date, kilometers of route and passengers per year.

Overall, London has one of the oldest railway station with longest route as compared to others, while Tokyo carries largest number of passengers throughout the year. In contrast, Kyoto has one of the shortest route and the lowest passengers.

In 1863, London was the first city to start underground railway, then Paris in 1900 and Tokyo in 1927, while Washington DC and Kyoto started later. Los Angeles has started in year 2001 with the 28 kilometers of route and the number of passengers in 50 per year.

With the route, London is at the top, followed by Paris, Tokyo, Washington, DC, Kyoto, and Los Angeles. Among all, Kyoto has smallest number of both, the number of passengers and the route travellers.

In terms of passengers, London has the highest number of visitors and also one of the oldest railway, where Los Angeles started recently.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the table’s subject and give an overview that notes London’s early opening and long route, and Tokyo’s high passenger use. However, the overview contains a key factual error: London does not have the highest passenger figure; Tokyo does, at 1,927 million, compared with London’s 775 million. The response also omits important comparisons, including Tokyo’s passenger total being the highest despite its route being shorter than London’s and Paris’s, and Washington’s relatively low passenger figure for a much longer route than Kyoto’s or Los Angeles’s. Some details are inaccurate or unclear, such as saying Kyoto has the lowest route and passenger figures without noting that Los Angeles has a longer route and slightly more passengers. Select and report the figures more precisely, then compare them directly.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.0

The response has a basic paragraph structure, moving from an introduction and overview to opening dates and then route and passenger information. This gives the reader some organisation, and phrases such as “In contrast” and “In terms of passengers” signal comparisons. However, progression is limited because the final paragraph repeats the claim that London has the highest passenger number, while the earlier overview already discusses passenger rankings. The route paragraph lists cities without giving figures, and “Among all” does not clearly connect the following comparison to the data. Grouping the information into clear comparisons—for example, oldest and longest systems, then passenger use and the newer smaller systems—would make the progression more coherent and reduce repetition.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use relevant vocabulary such as “opening date,” “route,” “passengers per year,” and “followed by,” so the topic is generally clear. There is some variety in how you describe comparisons, including “In contrast” and “In terms of passengers.” However, several word choices and collocations are imprecise: “railway station” refers to a station rather than a system, “route travellers” is unclear, and “passengers” are incorrectly described as “visitors.” The phrase “the number of passengers in 50 per year” also makes the figure difficult to interpret. Use precise data-reporting language such as “carried 50 million passengers annually” and “had the shortest route.” This would improve clarity and make the vocabulary more appropriate to an academic table summary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt a mixture of simple and longer sentences, including a contrastive overview and a sentence listing opening dates. Meaning is usually recoverable, but errors in agreement, articles, plurals and sentence construction are noticeable. For example, “one of the oldest railway station” needs a plural noun, and “Kyoto has smallest number of both” is missing an article and has an awkward structure. The sentence beginning “In 1863” joins several dates and clauses in a way that makes the comparison difficult to follow. Tense is also inconsistent in “Los Angeles has started in year 2001,” where a past event should be reported in the past simple. Practise accurate comparative sentence patterns and check articles and singular/plural forms.

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

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