The graph shows Underground Station passenger numbers in London.
Sample Response
The graph shows the number of passengers travelling at various times at a London Underground stationin an underground station in London. According to the graphAs per the chart, passenger numbers peak at 400there are 400 passengers travelling at 8.00 am and this seems to be the time that the station is busiestthe majority of the travelling takes place. This might be because people usually go to work or children go to schoolpeople usually go to work or children to school at this time; hence, 8.00 am has the highest number of people using the underground station. Moreover, the second highest numbers of travellers were, with a slightly less number than 8.00 am in the evening travel, at 18.00 having 390 travellers. Hence, the most likely explanationimmediate justification would be thatas this is when people travel home after workit is the time, people travelling back after work. However, it is noticeable that the fewest people useleast number of people use the underground at 4.00 pm and 6.00 am assuming it is the same groupstype of people travelling back and forth at different times as they start and finish workfor starting work and finishing work. It is also observed that a passenger total of 300the number of people travelling (300) occursseems to happen frequently at different times during the day.
Overall, the times of day with the highest numbersthe time of the day that shows a high number of people using the underground station in London are 8.00 am and 6.00 pmis at 8.00am and 6.00pm.
Why this response received Band 5.0
The response’s strongest feature is its identification of the two rush-hour peaks and the principal low points. However, much of the report speculates about commuters’ reasons instead of describing the graph, while several fluctuations and exact values are omitted or misstated; the highest-priority improvement is to replace unsupported explanations with a chronological account of the rises, falls, peaks, and troughs.
IELTS Writing Criteria Scores
Task Achievement
The main peaks and lows are identified, but the description is selective, gives the evening peak inaccurately, and devotes substantial space to unsupported explanations.
Report the full daily pattern chronologically and use the graph’s values, including about 380 passengers at 18:00, without explaining why people travel.
Coherence and Cohesion
The response has an introduction and overview, but progression within the body is weakened by long, tangled sentences and repeated causal speculation.
Organise the day into morning, midday, and evening stages, using one clear sentence for each major change.
Lexical Resource
Some relevant graph vocabulary is used, but repetition and awkward choices such as “majority of the travelling” and “immediate justification” reduce precision.
Use concise trend language such as “peaked,” “fell sharply,” “recovered,” and “reached a second peak.”
Grammatical Range and Accuracy
Frequent problems with sentence structure, agreement, articles, and clause linking make several comparisons difficult to follow.
Write shorter complete sentences and check subject–verb agreement and punctuation before adding subordinate clauses.
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IELTS Academic Writing Task 1
The graph shows Underground Station passenger numbers in London.
Your response
Write the task yourself, then compare your choices with the annotated response.