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Line graph: Share of daily journeys by transport mode

Pick out the main features of this line graph for your overview, write your report on a 20-minute timer, then compare it with a band-8 model answer.

WRITING TASK 1

Line graph

You should spend about 20 minutes on this task.

The graph below shows the percentage of daily journeys made by bicycle, car and public transport in one European city between 1980 and 2020.

Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make comparisons where relevant.

Write at least 150 words.

Share of daily journeys by transport mode
Line graph: Share of daily journeys by transport mode (%). The values are in the data table below.0%20%40%60%80%198019902000201020152020
  • Car
  • Bicycle
  • Public transport
Show data table
Share of daily journeys by transport mode
CategoryCarBicyclePublic transport
198062%8%30%
199058%12%30%
200048%18%34%
201036%28%36%
201530%33%37%
202025%38%37%

GoPrep wrote this practice question in the style of the exam. It is not an official IELTS question.

What your overview should say

An overview names the main trends or differences in one or two sentences, without numbers. These are the features a strong answer picks out:

  1. 1Overall, the car lost its dominance as cycling became far more popular, while public transport stayed relatively stable.
  2. 2Car use declined steadily from 62% of journeys in 1980 to 25% in 2020, whereas cycling rose from 8% to 38%, overtaking the car by 2015.
  3. 3Public transport remained within a narrow band of 30% to 37% throughout, edging up slightly in the later years.

Write it on the clock

Spend the first few minutes planning, then write.

20:00

0 words of 150 minimum

Your answer stays on this page only. Copy it before you leave.

Band-8 model answer

Write your own answer first, then compare: how it answers the exact question, what each paragraph does, and which phrases you could borrow.

Show model answer (185 words)

The line graph compares the share of daily journeys made by car, bicycle and public transport in a European city from 1980 to 2020.

Overall, the car lost its dominance as cycling became far more popular, while public transport remained fairly stable. By 2020 the bicycle had overtaken both of the other modes.

Car use fell consistently throughout the period. It accounted for 62% of journeys in 1980 and 58% in 1990, before dropping more quickly to 48% in 2000 and 36% in 2010. By 2020 it had declined further to just 25%. The bicycle showed the opposite trend. Beginning at only 8% in 1980, it rose to 18% in 2000 and 28% in 2010, and continued to grow to reach 38% in 2020, the highest figure of the three modes.

Public transport was the steadiest category. It held at 30% in both 1980 and 1990, then edged up to 34% in 2000 and 36% in 2010. After that it levelled off, standing at 37% in both 2015 and 2020. Public transport drew level with the car at 36% in 2010 and then overtook it.

Useful vocabulary

PhraseMeaning
modal sharethe proportion of trips made by each type of transport
decline steadilygo down gradually
overtakemove ahead of
remain stablestay at about the same level
a fivefold increasegrowth to five times the original figure
level offstop rising or falling and stay flat

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