Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-25

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 illustrate data about underground railway in six cities.Overall london have the oldest and the tall system between the six cities,however tokyo and paris have the highest number of passengers per year also koyoto and los angeles have the lowest number of passengers.

london is the first railway system was opened in 1863 with distance of 394 kilometers also have 775 million passengers per year, paris and tokyo bulit nearly at the same time paris opened first in 1900 and tokyo after 27 years, paris also have 199 kilometers and tokyo 155 km and the passengers 1191 million for paris and 1927 million for tokyo.however washington DC started working in 1976 with 126 kilometes and 144 million user of the underground railway.

for the newest underground railway kyoto and los angeles koyoto was built in 1981 and los angeles after 20 years in 2001 and they have the smallest distance and number of passengers compare to the others with 11 km and 28 km also 45 million and 50 million passengers for kyoto and los angeles respectivley.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main contrasts: London is the oldest and has the longest route, Tokyo carries the most passengers, and Kyoto and Los Angeles are the smallest systems. The response also includes figures for all six cities and makes relevant comparisons, such as Paris opening before Tokyo and Los Angeles being the newest. However, the overview is not fully precise: Paris, rather than Tokyo, has the second-highest passenger total, and the opening sentence groups Paris and Tokyo together as having the highest figures without distinguishing their ranking. Some details are also less clearly expressed, particularly the comparison of the two newest systems. A sharper overview that accurately ranks the key figures would make the summary more complete and precise.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a clear overall arrangement: an opening overview is followed by information about the older systems and then the newer ones. This gives the reader a generally logical route through the data. Linking words such as “however,” “also,” and “and” help connect comparisons, but they are sometimes used mechanically or where the relationship is unclear. For example, the long second paragraph joins several facts with “also” and “and,” making the comparisons harder to follow. Paragraphing is useful, though the overview and body could be more clearly separated in purpose. Use shorter sentences and organise the details consistently—for example, compare route length and passenger numbers within each group—to improve progression and cohesion.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.5

You use enough topic vocabulary to communicate the main data, including “route,” “passengers per year,” “opened,” and “smallest distance.” There are also attempts at comparison, such as “oldest” and “newest.” However, some word choices and collocations are inaccurate or informal: “the tall system” does not clearly mean the longest route, and “user of the underground railway” is less suitable than “passengers.” Spelling errors such as “koyoto,” “bulit,” “kilometes,” and “respectivley” are noticeable, while repeated use of “also” limits variety. Choose precise terms for route length and passenger totals, and proofread spelling to make the data easier to interpret.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more extended sentence forms, including comparisons between cities and clauses linked with “however.” Meaning is generally recoverable, but some errors in sentence structure, agreement, articles, and punctuation reduce accuracy. For example, “The table illustrate” needs subject–verb agreement, while “london is the first railway system was opened” combines two structures incorrectly. The opening paragraph also runs several ideas together without appropriate sentence boundaries, and “paris also have” has an incorrect verb form. Aim for a reliable pattern such as “London’s system opened in 1863 and has a route of 394 kilometres.” Separating comparisons into complete sentences will help you show grammatical range with better control.

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

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