The graph below shows the quantities of goods transported in the UK between 1974 and 2002 by four different modes of transport.

Same questionCompare 4 different answers (Band 5–6.5)

Sample Response

1

The provided line graph reveals information about the quantities of goods transportedfigures for commodities transported in the UK from 1974 until 2002 usingby using four kinds of transportation. These modes of transportThose transportations were roadroads, water, rail and pipelines. In general, most of the goods transported via those transportation systems showedunveiled overall upward trendspositive trends which increased gradually for 28 years.

2

It can be seen that the highest amount of commodities transported was shown by road transportland transportation which was around 70 million tonnes in 1974 to approximately 100 million tonnes in 2002. As a result, it can be stated as a substantial increasehuge improvement compared with the other modesamong other mentioned transportation. In the second place, there was water transportation which increased bygained about 2720 million tonnes of goods in the observed years.

3

Furthermore, the amount transported by rail fluctuatedthe fluctuation trend came from rail transportation. In 1974, the amount transported by railusage of the train for transporting goods was quite similar to water transportation about 40 million tonnestones; however, during the following years, it fluctuated and ended only slightly higherit gave a tiny increase. Subsequently, pipeline carried the lowest amount of goodssupplies in 1974 which was about 5 million tonnesaround 10 million tons. After that, this mode of transport brought promising improvement until in 1994 which remained steadily above 20 million tones.

Overall assessment

Why this response received Band 6.0

The response is strongest in its clear overall organization and its identification of roads as the dominant mode and pipelines as the least used. Its main limitation is incomplete and sometimes inaccurate reporting of the trends, particularly for water and rail, alongside frequent awkward collocations and sentence structures. The highest priority is to select accurate start-to-end comparisons for every mode and express them in simpler, controlled sentences.

Band score breakdown

IELTS Writing Criteria Scores

TA

Task Achievement

6.0
Scoring rule

A relevant overview and several main features are given, but coverage is uneven and some descriptions of water, rail, and pipeline trends are inaccurate or unclear.

Next step

Compare the starting and finishing figures for all four modes accurately, while highlighting the notable fluctuations rather than describing the trends too generally.

CC

Coherence and Cohesion

6.0
Scoring rule

The response progresses logically from the overview to the individual modes, although some linking expressions and references are mechanical or unclear.

Next step

Group roads and water together and rail and pipeline together, using precise comparisons instead of loosely connected commentary.

LR

Lexical Resource

6.0
Scoring rule

There is an adequate range of transport and trend vocabulary, but frequent awkward collocations reduce precision.

Next step

Prefer natural combinations such as goods were transported, rose by, fluctuated, and remained stable instead of forcing less familiar synonyms.

GRA

Grammatical Range and Accuracy

5.5
Scoring rule

The response attempts a mixture of simple and complex forms, but recurring errors with clauses, articles, agreement, and prepositions weaken control.

Next step

Build each data sentence around a clear subject and verb, then check articles, plural forms, and relative clauses carefully.

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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1

The graph below shows the quantities of goods transported in the UK between 1974 and 2002 by four different modes of transport.

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