IELTS Writing Task 1: Tables: Modes of Travel

Cambridge IELTS Book 6, Test 2

The table below gives information about changes in modes of travel in England between 1985 and 2000.

Here’s an essay by one of my IELTS students:

The given table displays average distance in miles related to several modes of travel undertaken by person in England between 1985 and 2000

On the whole, the number of average miles in all modes increased considerably. Furthermore, car seems was the most favourite transportation in this two periods. As for the public transportation, all the figures of average miles grew significantly, apart from local bus.

With respect to the year 1985, car was accounted for the highest figure with 3199 miles, follow by local bus and other types of transportation with 429 and 450 miles respectively. the average miles traveled by walking and train showed similar figures around 250 to 300, which is approximately four folds of bicycle and long distance bus. The least figure saw in taxi with merely 13 miles.

Regarding the year 2000, the average miles traveled by car rose markedly by 1607. The similar trends also took place in the public transportations, the average miles traveled by long distance bus increased by 70 as well as in taxi ,there was a dramatic growth of 29. In contrast, in terms of local bus, the figure declined nearly one third to 274.

Here’s my corrected version:

Describing Tables

Describing tables isn’t different from describing many other kinds of charts.
If the table includes time, use the method for describing a line graph.
You must compare and contrast as much as you can.
Identify the main features (the highest/lowest numbers; the biggest changes; things that don’t change; and so on).
Be accurate with all numbers.
Group several features together if necessary (in the above table, we could make a group out of public transport, or private transport)
Make a plan before you start. (Topic/Overview/Type of language needed/Time/Groups)

About Paul Davey

I’m Paul from Bristol, England. I am an IELTS tutor available for face-to-face classes in Taipei and Skype classes anywhere in the world. I'm based in Yonghe, New Taipei City — very close to Taipei. I have been teaching for many years and I am good at it. I’m patient and never tire of correcting students’ mistakes. I know many good ways for students to learn quickly and make a lot of progress in a short time. You won’t be wasting your money. I especially know the difficulties faced by Chinese speakers, and I know how to overcome these difficulties. IELTS is my primary concern and over the years I have taught hundreds of students in the UK, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and other spots around the world. I know what the examiners look for and I know how to increase your band and get the grade you need to make your dream come true. I have been blogging about IELTS for about a decade. I started my first website in 2007, before beginning to blog at IELTS Tutor on the Hello UK website. Now I blog only at IELTS in Taiwan and Around the World. I majored in Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia, UK, graduating with a bachelor’s degree (2/1 with honours). I obtained my language-teaching qualification in 2006, which is accredited by the Royal College of Teachers. Before I began teaching, I worked in a software company in the UK, writing and selling software solutions. After teaching for many years I took a five-year break to run my own retailing business. Following that adventure, I returned to full-time teaching. For the last 11 years, I’ve been in Taiwan, where in addition to my IELTS work, I have taught corporate classes at Taipei Bank, Pfizer, and Chinese Petroleum Corporation (CPC, Taiwan). I have interests in many fields including travel, literature, science and history.

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