The percentage of people who travelled by bus in the UK from 2009 to 2011

IELTS Academic Writing Task 1 - Tables

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IELTS Writing Task 1 Question

The graph below shows the percentage of people who travelled by bus in the UK from 2009 to 2011. Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features and make comparisons where relevant.

Common Questions for the Table

1. Graph Type: Table

2. Title: Percentage of People Traveling by Bus for Various Purposes in the UK (2009–2011)

3. What are the units of measurement?: Percentage of people

4. Who: Bus users in the UK

5. When: 2009–2011

6. Where: United Kingdom

7. Topic: Trends in bus usage for different purposes

Comparison Showing and Trends Any change over time (such as an increase or a decrease) is a trend.

Comparison 1 : Shopping (Declining Trend)

Details:

2009: Most popular purpose (65%).

2011: Dropped significantly to just over 50%.

Comparison 2 : Visiting Friends (Increasing Trend)

Details:

2009–2010: Around 20% of bus users.

2011: Slight increase to just under 25%.

Comparison 3 : Work Commute (Significant Decline)

Details:
- 2009: Around 5% used the bus for work.

- 2011: Usage declined drastically to almost negligible levels.

Sample Answer

The table illustrates the percentage of people in the UK who travelled by bus for different purposes from 2009 to 2011.

Overall, bus usage for shopping and work declined over the period, while the percentage of people using buses for visiting friends, study, and day tours increased slightly.

Shopping was the most common reason for bus travel in 2009, with 65% of users citing this purpose. However, this figure dropped significantly to just over 50% by 2011. Similarly, commuting to work by bus declined sharply, starting at 5% in 2009 and becoming nearly negligible by 2011.

Conversely, the proportion of people using buses to visit friends increased from about 20% in 2009 and 2010 to just under 25% in 2011. Bus usage for study and day tours followed similar trends, with day tours consistently attracting around 3% more users than study across all three years.

Top 27 Vocabularies

Vocabulary	Type	Meaning	Synonyms	Examples
Decline	Verb/Noun	A reduction or decrease	Drop, Fall	Bus usage for shopping showed a significant decline.
Proportion	Noun	A part or share of a whole	Percentage, Fraction	The proportion of bus users visiting friends increased.
Commuting	Verb	Traveling regularly between home and work	Traveling, Journeying	Commuting to work by bus dropped to negligible levels.
Consistent	Adjective	Remaining steady over time	Stable, Uniform	Bus use for study remained consistent across the years.
Negligible	Adjective	Very small or insignificant	Minimal, Insufficient	By 2011, bus usage for work was almost negligible.
Illustrate	Verb	To explain or clarify using examples or visuals	Depict, Show	“The table illustrates bus usage for different purposes.”
Usage	Noun	The act of using something	Consumption, Utilization	“Bus usage for shopping decreased over the years.”
Purpose	Noun	The reason for doing something	Intent, Goal	“The purpose of most bus trips was shopping.”
Sharp	Adjective	Sudden and significant	Steep, Drastic	“There was a sharp decline in bus usage for commuting.”
Increase	Verb/Noun	A rise in amount or number	Growth, Surge	“Bus usage for day tours saw a slight increase.”
Slightly	Adverb	To a small degree	Marginally, Barely	“The percentage of people using buses for study increased slightly.”
Attract	Verb	To draw or pull interest	Draw, Engage	“Day tours consistently attracted more bus users than study.”
Drop	Verb/Noun	A reduction in amount	Decline, Fall	“Bus usage for shopping dropped significantly over the years.”
Significant	Adjective	Large enough to be noticeable	Substantial, Noticeable	“Shopping experienced a significant decrease in bus users.”
Common	Adjective	Occurring frequently or widely shared	Frequent, Prevalent	“Shopping was the most common reason for bus travel in 2009.”
Under	Preposition	Slightly less than	Below, Just below	“Bus usage for visiting friends rose to just under 25% in 2011.”
Consistently	Adverb	Without change or interruption	Steadily, Regularly	“Day tours consistently had more users compared to study.”
Trend	Noun	A general direction in which something changes	Pattern, Movement	“The trends indicate an increase in leisure-related bus travel.”
Figure	Noun	A numerical value or statistic	Number, Data	“The figure for shopping dropped to just over 50% by 2011.”
Decline	Verb/Noun	A decrease in number or quality	Drop, Reduction	“There was a noticeable decline in work-related bus usage.”
Slight	Adjective	Small in degree	Minor, Insignificant	“The rise in bus usage for study was slight but steady.”
Category	Noun	A group with shared characteristics	Class, Group	“Different categories of bus travel were analyzed in the table.”
Evident	Adjective	Clear or noticeable	Apparent, Obvious	“A shift in travel purposes was evident over the years.”
Leisure	Noun	Free time activities	Recreation, Relaxation	“Leisure activities like day tours saw a slight increase in bus usage.”
Steady	Adjective	Regular and consistent	Stable, Continuous	“Bus usage for study showed a steady trend.”
Minimal	Adjective	The smallest amount possible	Negligible, Insignificant	“Electricity consumption was minimal during the time.”
Vary	Verb	To change or differ across different situations	Fluctuate, Change	“Reasons for bus travel varied across the years.”

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