Band 6.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 6.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-11-01

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 6.5)

The table illustrates the information (Date opened, Kilometers of route and Passengers per year) of underground railway systems in London, Paris, Tokyo, Washington DC, Kyoto and Los Angeles respectively.

Overall, Tokyo contains the highest numbers of passengers per year. In contrast, Kyoto have the least passengers. In terms of kilometers of route, London achieves first rank and Kyoto is still the least one.

Tokyo's railway system was introduced in 1927 and it contains 1927 millions passengers per anum. It's distance of route is 155 kilometers. Similarly, Paris' railway system, built in 1900, have 1191 millions passengers with a route of 199 kilometers. Moreover, in London's railway system there are 775 millions passengers and 394 kilometers of route which is highest in the table and it was introduced in 1863.

Furthermore, in Washington DC, there are 144 million passengers with 126 kilometers of route which was constructed in 1976. However, in Kyoto and Los Angeles, there are 45 and 50 millions passengers annually and 11 and 28 kilometers of route. They are introduced in 1981 and 2001.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 6.5

You cover all six cities and report the three measures, with a useful overview identifying Tokyo as the busiest system and London as having the longest route. The comparisons are generally accurate, including the contrast between Kyoto and Los Angeles. This meets the task well, and the overview shows some selection of key features rather than simply listing every figure. However, the overview could be more complete: it does not identify Tokyo as the newest system with the highest passenger total, or London as the oldest, and it says Kyoto has the fewest passengers without noting that it also has the shortest route. A more explicit comparison of the extremes and the relationship between route length and passenger numbers would make the summary more fully developed.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 6.5

The response has a clear overall structure: an introduction, an overview, and two paragraphs grouping the cities. The progression from Tokyo, Paris and London to Washington DC, Kyoto and Los Angeles is easy to follow, and linking expressions such as “In contrast” and “Furthermore” help signal relationships. This gives the report a coherent arrangement. Some connections are nevertheless mechanical or imprecise. “Similarly” does not clearly explain how Paris resembles Tokyo, while “However” introduces Kyoto and Los Angeles without a clear contrast. The final paragraph also combines several figures and opening dates in a way that makes the comparisons less distinct. Use links that express the exact relationship, and organise the data around clear contrasts such as oldest/newest or largest/smallest.

Lexical Resource: Band 6.0

You use an adequate range of vocabulary for describing the table, including “illustrates,” “in contrast,” “introduced,” and “annually.” The meaning is generally clear, and you attempt some variation rather than repeating only basic terms. However, several choices are inaccurate or unnatural for this context: “contains the highest numbers of passengers,” “achieves first rank,” and “introduced” for a railway system. There are also form and spelling issues in “1927 millions passengers” and “anum.” These do not prevent the reader from understanding the data, but they limit precision and naturalness. Prefer standard reporting collocations such as “carried the most passengers,” “had the longest route,” and “opened,” and check number expressions and spelling carefully.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 6.0

You use a mix of simple and more complex sentence forms, including relative and time clauses, as in “Paris’ railway system, built in 1900…” and “which was constructed in 1976.” Most sentences communicate the intended comparisons, and the errors rarely obscure the figures. Some grammatical problems remain, particularly subject–verb agreement and noun forms: “Kyoto have” should be “Kyoto has,” and “Paris’ railway system … have” should be “has.” The sentence “Tokyo contains the highest numbers” also has an agreement issue, and the final sentence has an unclear structure when dates are attached to the plural subject “They.” Improve control by checking each subject and verb, and by making the subject of each clause explicit when reporting opening dates.

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