The table below gives information about the underground railway systems in six cities. Underground Railways Systems City Date opened Kilometres of route Passengers per year (in millions) London Paris Tokyo Washington DC Kyoto Los Angeles
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Sample Response
The supplied table gives data on underground railway system in six metropolitan cities namely: London, Paris, Tokyo, Washington DC, Kyoto and Los Angeles. As is observed, London railway system is the oldest among six and has the longest rail route and the most recent railway system in Los Angeles having a small route and fewer passengers using the railway system each year.
London railway system was opened in 1863 and has a total of 394 km. route. Paris railway system was started in 1900 and has 199 km. route but has a far larger passenger (1191 million per year) than the London railway (775 million passengers per year). Again, Tokyo railway has the largest passengers using the system and this railway station was started in the year 1927.
Two most recent railway stations are Kyoto and Los Angeles those started in the year 1981 and 2001 consecutively and have 11 and 28 km. of routes only. The 11 km. route of Kyoto railway station is the smallest route among the mentioned six cities.
IELTS Writing Correction
- 1. Fix number and article Original: on underground railway system Suggested revision: on the underground railway systems Why it matters: The table covers multiple systems, so a definite article and plural noun are required.
- 2. Punctuate namely phrase Original: cities namely: Suggested revision: cities, namely Why it matters: “Namely” should follow a comma and does not take a colon in this construction.
- 3. Fix superlative phrase Original: the oldest among six Suggested revision: the oldest of the six Why it matters: Use “of” when selecting one item from a defined group.
- 4. Use possessive form Original: London railway system was opened Suggested revision: London’s railway system opened Why it matters: The possessive form and active verb create the correct noun phrase.
- 5. Format route length Original: has a total of 394 km. route Suggested revision: has a 394-kilometre route Why it matters: This is the natural construction for stating the total route length.
- 6. Use possessive form Original: Paris Suggested revision: Paris’s Why it matters: The city name should be possessive because the system belongs to Paris.
- 7. Use opening verb Original: was started in 1900 Suggested revision: opened in 1900 Why it matters: Railway systems are normally described as opening in a particular year.
- 8. Format route length Original: has 199 km. route Suggested revision: has a 199-kilometre route Why it matters: A compound adjective correctly links the number and unit to “route.”
- 9. Fix count comparison Original: a far larger passenger Suggested revision: far more passengers Why it matters: Passenger numbers require the plural count expression “more passengers.”
- 10. Clarify comparison target Original: the London railway Suggested revision: London’s system Why it matters: This possessive phrase clearly compares the Paris and London systems.
- 11. Format route length Original: 11 km. route Suggested revision: 11-kilometre route Why it matters: The number and unit should form a hyphenated compound adjective before “route.”
- 12. Name the system Original: station Suggested revision: system Why it matters: The table describes an entire railway system rather than one station.
Suggested Rewrites
- on underground railway system on the underground railway systems
- cities namely: cities, namely
- the oldest among six the oldest of the six
- London railway system was opened London’s railway system opened
- has a total of 394 km. route has a 394-kilometre route
- Paris Paris’s
Why this response received Band 6.0
The response is strongest in its clear overview of the oldest, longest, newest, and smallest systems, supported by several accurate comparisons. Its main limitation is incomplete coverage: Washington DC is omitted, and key figures for Tokyo and Los Angeles are not reported. The highest priority is to organize the six cities into meaningful groups and include enough comparative data to represent every system without sacrificing accuracy.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The overview identifies important extremes and most stated figures are accurate, but one city and several key route or passenger values are omitted.
Cover all six systems and compare both route length and passenger volume, especially including Washington DC and Tokyo's leading passenger total.
Coherence and Cohesion
Information is arranged in a generally logical sequence with a clear overview, though progression relies on a limited set of links and some awkward references.
Organize the details explicitly into older, larger systems and newer, smaller systems, with direct comparative links between them.
Lexical Resource
The vocabulary is sufficient for describing the table, but repetition and imprecise phrases such as larger passenger and railway station limit flexibility.
Use precise terms such as passenger numbers, annual ridership, route length, and system rather than repeatedly using railway or station.
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
A range of sentence structures is attempted and meaning remains clear, but article, agreement, punctuation, and relative-clause errors recur.
Check noun phrases and relative clauses, particularly forms such as the London system, the six cities, and systems that opened.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The table below gives information about the underground railway systems in six cities. Underground Railways Systems City Date opened Kilometres of route Passengers per year (in millions) London Paris Tokyo Washington DC Kyoto Los Angeles
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