Band 6.0 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.0 · 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 6.0)

The table provides information about the underground railway systems in six cities.

Overall, the oldest underground railway system was opened in London, whereas Los Angeles has the newest underground railway facility. In addition, Tokyo's railway system has the highest number of passengers per year.

Looking first at London, railway systems were functional in 1863, recorded 775 million passengers per year, and covered 394 Kilometers of route. Following this, Paris began its underground railway system in 1900, while the number of passengers increased to 1191 millions per year, and the kilometers of route covered decreased to 199. Tokyo recorded 1927 millions passengers yearly with 155 kilometers of route coverage, which opened its first underground railway track in 1927.

Turning to Washington DC, the number of passengers per year starts to decline, reaching to just 144 millions, covering 126 kilometers. In 1981, Kyoto began its underground railway system, which recorded the least passengers and kilometers of route among the six cities, 45 million yearly,and 126 km, respectively. Moreover, Los Angeles has the second least number of passengers per year, and kilometers of route.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.0

You identify the oldest and newest systems and correctly note Tokyo’s highest annual passenger figure, giving the response a relevant overview. You also report several key figures for London, Paris, Tokyo and Washington, DC. However, the task is only partially covered because the final comparison is incomplete: Los Angeles is described as having the second-lowest passenger total, but its route length and figures are not stated, and the Kyoto route length is incorrectly given as 126 km rather than 11 km. Some comparisons are also unclear, such as saying passengers “increased” from London to Paris, which suggests a trend rather than comparing separate cities. Include accurate figures for all six systems and make the main contrasts explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an introduction, an overview, and two body paragraphs that move from the older systems to the more recent ones. Phrases such as “Looking first” and “Turning to” help signal this progression. However, some linking is mechanical or imprecise. “Following this” and “In addition” do not always clarify the relationship between the data, while “the number of passengers per year starts to decline” implies a continuous sequence across cities. The final sentence also leaves the Los Angeles comparison unfinished. Improve cohesion by grouping cities around clear contrasts, such as older versus newer systems or larger versus smaller networks, and use references that make each comparison explicit.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of task-related vocabulary, including “underground railway system,” “route,” “passengers per year,” and “recorded,” and the meaning is generally clear. There are also attempts at more formal phrasing, such as “Turning to” and “whereas.” Some choices are inaccurate or unnatural, however: “railway systems were functional” is less suitable than saying a system “opened” or “began operation,” and “kilometers of route coverage” is awkward. “The number of passengers increased” also implies change over time rather than a difference between cities. Check number forms and consistency in expressions such as “1191 millions” and “1927 millions passengers.” More precise collocations would make the comparisons clearer and more natural.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and complex sentence forms, including a clear contrast with “whereas” and a relative clause in “which opened its first underground railway track in 1927.” Most sentences remain understandable, and errors do not generally prevent the reader from following the information. Some grammatical inaccuracies persist, particularly with articles, plurals and sentence construction. For example, “recorded 775 million passengers per year, and covered” has an unclear subject after the opening phrase, while “reaching to just 144 millions” has an unnecessary preposition and an incorrect plural form. The sentence about Kyoto also has awkward punctuation and spacing around “yearly,and.” Aim for consistent past-tense reporting and check that each clause has a clear subject and correctly formed quantity.

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