Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-10-30

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 provides data of underground railway transport such as opening date,length of route and passengers per year of six cities-London,Paris,Tokyo,WC,Kyoto and Los angles.

Overall,The first railway system opened at London along with the highest length of route while Tokyo deals with the large number of passenger using daily transport per year.Though the length of route in Tokyo is the third most among giving cities.

Most of cities started their railway journey in theirs 20's except Los angles in 2001.In terms of length after London,Paris is in second position with lenght about 199 kilometeres.Tokyo and Washington Dc has almost slight difference in their route length of 155 and 126 km.Both Kyoto and Los angeles have lentgh about 11km and 28 km respectively.

The highest number of passenger per year in Tokyo about 1927 millions where as Kyoto has lower passenger about 45million which is about 40times lower than Tokyo.London,paris,WC,Los angeles carrying passenger every year about-775,1191,126,28 mill

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.0

You identify the main contrasts: London is the oldest system and has the longest route, while Tokyo carries the most passengers; you also compare the smaller systems in Kyoto and Los Angeles. This gives the response a relevant overview and covers the table’s three measures. However, some details are incomplete or inaccurate. The overview says Tokyo’s passengers use the system “daily,” although the figures are annual, and the final sentence is cut off after listing passenger totals, leaving Los Angeles’s figure unclear and omitting a complete comparison. The opening dates are only broadly summarised rather than accurately grouped. To strengthen the report, present all key figures clearly and check that each comparison reflects the table precisely.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.0

The response has a recognisable structure: an introduction, an overview, and paragraphs comparing opening dates, route lengths, and passenger numbers. This makes the information generally easy to follow. The progression is less controlled in places, however. The sentence beginning “Most of cities started…” shifts from opening dates to route lengths without a clear transition, and the final paragraph ends abruptly after a list of figures. Linking expressions such as “Overall,” “In terms of,” and “whereas” help signal relationships, but some are used mechanically or do not connect fully developed ideas. Grouping the data consistently—for example, oldest/largest systems first, then newer/smaller ones—and completing each comparison would make the organisation more coherent.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use some relevant task vocabulary, including “route,” “passengers per year,” “highest,” and “third most,” so the reader can understand the intended comparisons. However, the range and control are limited, with noticeable spelling and word-choice problems that sometimes make the report harder to read. Examples include “length of route” where “route length” is more natural, “deals with the large number” for passenger use, and repeated misspellings such as “lenght” and “Los angles.” “Railway journey” is also an imprecise way to describe when a system opened. Aim for accurate, conventional chart language and proofread city names and key terms; this will improve precision without requiring unnecessarily complex vocabulary.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

You attempt both simple and more complex sentences, including a contrast with “Though” and a comparison using “whereas.” The overall meaning is usually recoverable, but errors in sentence construction, agreement, articles, and punctuation are evident. For example, “Most of cities started their railway journey in theirs 20’s” has problems with the article, possessive form, and phrasing, while “Tokyo and Washington Dc has” uses a singular verb with a plural subject. The opening sentence also lacks consistent spacing and capitalisation after commas and full stops. The final sentence is incomplete, which leaves its grammatical relationship unclear. Build accuracy by using shorter, complete comparison sentences and checking subject–verb agreement, articles, and sentence boundaries.

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