Band 5.5 IELTS Writing Task 1 Model Answer

Overall Band Score: 5.5 · Cambridge IELTS 11 · 2026-11-05

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 illustrated chart gives the information of underground subway system in six different countries.

The oldest Subway system was opened in 1863 in London and have a route of 394 KM, 775 million passengers passengers travel thruogh it per year. While the latest is in Los Angeles which was opened in 2001, having a very small route of 28 kilometers and only 50 million passengers travels through it per year.

On the other hand, the busiest railway systems are in Tokyo and Paris. The Railway system in Tokyo was opened in 1900. Alought, it has a small route but 1927 million passengers travel through it per year. The subway system in Paris was opened in 1927 and it has a slight larger route than Tokyo but 1191 million passengers travle through it per year which is less than the railway system in tokyo.

The subway system in Kyoto was opened in 1981. It has a very small route if only 11 KM and only 45 million people travel throuh it ervery year. and the subway in Washington DC was opened in 1976 and have a route of 126 KM. 144 million passenger travel through it per year.

AI examiner evaluation

Task Achievement / Task Response: Band 5.5

You report figures for all six cities and identify useful contrasts, especially London as the oldest system and Tokyo and Paris as high-use networks. However, some key information is inaccurate: Tokyo opened in 1927, not 1900, while Paris opened in 1900, not 1927. The overview is also limited; it would be clearer to state that London has the longest route, Tokyo carries the most passengers, and Kyoto has the shortest route and lowest passenger total. Several comparisons are mentioned but not fully interpreted, such as the contrast between route length and passenger numbers in Paris and Tokyo. More accurate reporting and a concise overview of the main patterns would make the response more complete.

Coherence and Cohesion: Band 5.5

The response has a basic paragraph structure, moving from London and Los Angeles to the busier systems and then the remaining cities. This gives the reader some organisation, and phrases such as “On the other hand” attempt to signal a change in focus. However, progression is not consistently clear: the Tokyo and Paris details are mixed with incorrect opening dates, and the final paragraph begins with Kyoto before shifting abruptly to Washington. Linking words are sometimes awkward or inaccurate, including “While” at the start of a sentence and “Alought” after a full stop. Grouping cities by a clear comparison—such as oldest/longest, highest passenger use, and smallest systems—would improve the flow.

Lexical Resource: Band 5.0

You use a relevant range of basic terms, including “route,” “passengers,” “busiest,” and “opened,” so the subject is generally understandable. However, vocabulary is repetitive, particularly “subway system” and “travel through it,” and some choices are imprecise for describing a table. “Countries” is inaccurate because the data concern cities, while “illustrated chart” is less natural than “table.” There are also noticeable spelling errors, such as “thruogh,” “Alought,” “travle,” and “throuh,” which reduce the accuracy and polish of the report. Use more precise reporting verbs and vary the language for passenger totals and route size.

Grammatical Range and Accuracy: Band 5.0

The response attempts both simple and longer sentences, including a contrast with “While” and a clause beginning “which is less than…”. However, control is inconsistent, and errors occur frequently enough to make some sentences awkward. For example, “the oldest Subway system … have a route” has subject–verb disagreement, and “50 million passengers travels” also uses the wrong verb form. Articles and sentence boundaries need attention: “and the subway in Washington DC…” follows a full stop with a lowercase opening, while “and only 45 million people…” begins a new sentence with a lowercase letter. Practise accurate agreement and punctuation, then build longer comparisons from correctly formed clauses.

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