A government-mandated clean air zone (CAZ) in Portsmouth is not enough to reduce emissions, with pollution on three sites continuing to breach the legal limit, the city’s council has said.
The zone was introduced in November 2021, with buses, coaches, taxis, private hire vehicles and heavy goods vehicles – but not personal cars and vans – charged if they do not meet specified emissions standards.
Two years on, 94% of monitored areas were found to comply with air quality standards, with sites in Hope Street, Market Way and Alfred Road still above legal limits.
Portsmouth City Council’s cabinet member for transport, Gerald Vernon-Jackson, said: ‘We have always said to Government that the mandated CAZ is not enough to reduce air pollution.
‘For the mandated CAZ to work the Government needs to significantly invest in transforming the way people can travel in Portsmouth in the same way they have done in London so that it is easier to choose a cleaner journey and for businesses to operate in a more sustainable way.’
