Part 1 — IntroductionQ3/2026Difficulty 3/5

Transport & commuting

IELTS Speaking questions reported by recent test-takers, compiled each quarter. Cambridge does not publish the active list, so this is a compilation of reports, not official material.

Questions

Question 145s to speak

How do you usually travel around your city?

Question 245s to speak

How long does your daily journey take?

Question 345s to speak

Has public transport improved where you live?

Question 445s to speak

Would you like to learn to drive, or do you already?

Model answer

Written by 8020 teachers. Do not memorise it — take the structure and the way ideas are developed, then speak about your own life.

How do you usually travel around your city? Motorbike, like most people. I use the bus occasionally now, which I didn't for years because I assumed it was unusable. How long does your daily journey take? About twenty minutes each way, though it depends entirely on the hour. The same trip at five in the afternoon is closer to forty. Has public transport improved where you live? Slowly, yes. The metro line finally opened, which was talked about for so long that people stopped believing in it. It only covers one route so far, but it changed how I think about the city. Would you like to learn to drive, or do you already? I can drive but I don't own a car, and I'm not planning to. In a city like mine a car means you sit in traffic in air conditioning instead of moving in the heat, and I'm not sure that's an upgrade.

Vocabulary you can use today

like most people
như phần lớn mọi người
I assumed it was unusable
tôi cứ tưởng nó không dùng được
it depends entirely on the hour
tuỳ hoàn toàn vào giờ nào
talked about for so long that people stopped believing in it
nói tới lâu quá nên người ta không tin nữa
it changed how I think about the city
nó làm tôi nghĩ khác về thành phố
I'm not sure that's an upgrade
tôi không chắc đó là nâng cấp

Common traps for Vietnamese speakers

Nêu hai con số cho cùng một chuyến đi (hai mươi phút và bốn mươi phút tuỳ giờ). Đó là cách trả lời câu hỏi thời gian mà vẫn có nội dung. Câu về metro là chỗ dùng được cấu trúc phức tự nhiên: "nói tới lâu quá nên người ta không tin nữa". Cấu trúc so...that trong một câu kể thật thì nghe không giống học thuộc. Câu cuối có một ý kiến nhẹ, hơi ngược ("ngồi trong máy lạnh giữa đường tắc thay vì di chuyển ngoài trời nóng"). Ý kiến ngược làm giám khảo muốn hỏi thêm — đó là dấu hiệu tốt.

âm cuối /t/ trong transport, route, heatâm cuối /z/ trong buses/z/, minutes/s/, cars/z//θ/ trong think, forty→/ɔː/, month/v/ trong travel, believing

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