Clean Air Zone

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Portsmouth Clean Air Zone

Portsmouth Clean Air Zone

Portsmouth has introduced a Clean Air Zone (CAZ), similar to many schemes across the country.

Cars, vans and motorcycles going to and from our car ferry port on Gunwharf Road will not be charged and can continue to use our services as usual. The only vehicles to be charged will be older taxis, private hire vehicles, buses, coaches and lorries (HGVs).

Portsmouth City Council has introduced the CAZ as some areas of the city centre have levels of pollutants, like nitrogen dioxide, that are likely to remain above safe legal limits unless action is taken now.

Find out more about the CAZ

Will you be charged?

If you are driving a car, van or motorcycle, you won’t be charged. The only vehicles to be charged will be the older taxis, private hire vehicles, buses, coaches and HGVs.

You can enter your registration number on the Government website to see if you will need to pay anything. Charges range from £10 a day for older taxis up to £50 a day for older HGVs, buses and coaches.

Check your registration

Beware of fake CAZ websites

Unfortunately, there have been a growing number of scam websites posing as payment vendors for Clean Air Zones. If you need to check your vehicle or pay a charge, please make sure you are using the government website.

It is the only official site where you can check if your vehicle is compliant and make payments. If you make a payment on a scam website, then you will receive a penalty charge notice for non-payment in the zone.

For more information, or if you think have fallen victim to scam like this, visit the Citizens Advice website to see if you can claim your money back.

If you think you have fallen victim to a scam like this or you’ve spotted a fraudulent website:

More information

Why has the Portsmouth CAZ being introduced?

Portsmouth City Council was identified by the UK government as one of over 60 local authorities with air pollution levels higher than legal limits. It was told to make improvements as soon as possible.

The council believes that a package of measures that don’t involve charging measures, even with the natural reduction in polluting vehicles over time, won’t be enough to achieve the necessary level of improvement in air quality. Therefore, the UK government has required the council to implement a charging Clean Air Zone.

How to pay

You can pay your charge online on through the Government’s Clean Air Zone portal. You will only be charged once per day no matter how many trips into the zone you make.

The charge won’t be issued automatically, so you’ll need to be aware if your vehicle is subject to the charge and pay it online within the payment window. You won’t receive a notification or reminder to tell you that you’ve driven through the zone in a vehicle that qualifies for the charge and need to make payment.

Pay your CAZ charge

Will motorhomes be charged?

Smaller motorhomes look likely to be treated as vans and won’t be charged. Larger motorhomes, on the scale of lorries, may be charged.

You should check your registration number on the Government website to be sure.