Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-24

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 illustrates the information regarding the underground railways in six cities (London, Paris, Tokyo, Washington, Kyoto, Los Angeles). The table gives data about the establishment date, kilometers of route and passengers per years, which is counted in millions.

Overall, the first underground railway was opened in London among all the cities. Over the following years, Paris observed the highest level in terms of passengers as well as kilometers it covered. In contrast, Kyoto showed the lowest amount of passengers.

In 1863, London started its railway system. The passengers who travelled per year were 775 million which covered 394 kilometers per route. Over the few decades, Paris lauched its railway in 1900 and experienced the highest number of passengers (1191 million) where it covered 119 km per round. It is followed closely by Tokyo, in 1927 showed 1927 millions of passengers per year, which is by far the second highest level compared to Paris. It covered 155 kilometers of route.

Conversely, Washington launched their railway in 1976, had 144 passengas with 126 kilometers of route. The least passengers where showed by Los Angeles and Kyoto (50 million, 15 million respectively) which were opened in 2001, 1981 and covered a kilometer of 28, 11 regardlesly.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You identify the table’s subject and give an overview that notes London as the earliest system and Kyoto as having the fewest passengers. You also include several relevant figures, such as London’s 394-kilometre route and Tokyo’s 1,927 million annual passengers. However, the overview is partly inaccurate: Paris does not have the highest passenger total or the longest route; Tokyo has the most passengers, while London has the longest route. Some details are also misreported, including Paris’s route as 119 km rather than 199 km and Kyoto’s passengers as 15 million rather than 45 million. The comparison of the six systems is therefore incomplete and not consistently accurate. Check each figure carefully and make the key contrasts explicit.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs grouping the older and newer systems. This gives the reader a basic progression through the data. Linking expressions such as “In contrast,” “It is followed closely by,” and “Conversely” help signal comparisons, although some are not used accurately or naturally. The final sentence combines Los Angeles and Kyoto with several dates and route figures, making the comparisons difficult to follow; it also gives the opening years in an order that does not match the city order. Separate these details into clearer sentences and group the systems by a consistent feature, such as route length or passenger numbers. This would make the cohesion less mechanical and the relationships between figures clearer.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use a reasonable range of task-related vocabulary, including “underground railways,” “establishment date,” “route,” and “passengers per year.” Some attempts at more formal reporting language, such as “observed the highest level,” are understandable but not idiomatic for describing table data. There are also noticeable spelling and word-choice errors, including “lauched,” “passengas,” and “regardlesly,” as well as the unclear phrase “per round.” These choices sometimes make the information harder to interpret, particularly when paired with inaccurate figures. Prefer precise, conventional expressions such as “recorded,” “annual passenger numbers,” and “route length,” and proofread spelling and collocations before submitting.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.5

You attempt both simple and more complex sentence forms, including relative clauses and comparisons, as in “Tokyo, in 1927 showed 1927 millions of passengers per year, which is by far the second highest level.” However, several sentences contain errors in tense, agreement, or sentence construction. For example, “Washington launched their railway in 1976, had 144 passengers” joins two clauses incorrectly, while “The least passengers where showed” has faulty word order and verb form. “Passengers per years” also has an incorrect plural form. These errors sometimes make relationships between the data unclear, although the main topic remains understandable. Build complex sentences around a clear subject and verb, and check agreement, tense, and clause boundaries.

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