S&WB customers may get higher bills with new water meters [Video]

NEW ORLEANS — Customers in New Orleans could see a 10 to 25 percent increase in their utility bills with the Sewerage and Water Board upgrading its water meters, according to Nola.com.

S&WB said the manual readers do not capture the total amount of water usage a customer uses. 

“Our meters in the ground are mechanical meters, and that means they have pieces on the inside that physically move,” said S&WB Project Manager Rebecca Johnsey on Monday. “So over time, they get gunked up and they slow down, and it actually takes more and more water on the front end to start the movement,” our partners reported.

However, with the new smart meters, customers could be surprised that the city’s old meters may have been saving them …