Trenton, N.J. — Trenton Water Works (TWW) announced today the launch of a $20-million project to replace 63,034 water meters in its five-municipality system. TWW meter readers will be able to read the new two-way communicating water meters (Smart Meters) remotely, eliminating almost all estimated water bills.
"We continue to pursue capital projects that not only improve water quality, but also strengthen TWW's billing and customer-service delivery, priorities that we set during the COVID-19 pandemic," said Sean Semple, Director of the city's Department of Water and Sewer, which operates Trenton Water Works. "Smart meters allow for automatic meter reading that eliminates nearly all estimated bills, stronger customer service and more efficient meter-reading operations."
TWW Meter Shop personnel and contract vendor National Metering Services will begin upgrading customers' water meters by appointment beginning in January 2024 in Trenton, Ewing Township, and Hopewell Township. Installations take about 30 minutes and require access to existing meters in customers' properties. TWW estimates it will replace approximately 21,000 meters in the project's first phase.
The New Jersey Water Bank, a program jointly administered by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the New Jersey Infrastructure Bank, is funding the $20-million project. This work is part of TWW's $405-million, six-year capital plan announced in 2019.
Trenton customers interested in upgrading to a two-way communicating water meter (Smart Meter) will receive a letter in December from TWW asking them to call the water utility's Meter Shop to make an appointment. Ewing Township and Hopewell Township customers will receive a letter from National Metering Services inviting them to make an appointment. There is no charge for the meter replacement.
"We are organizing H2Open community forums in the months ahead to educate our customers about the Smart Meter Project and other TWW priorities to produce quality drinking water. We hope our valued customers and service-area consumers will attend and share their questions about our operations, capital work, and water quality," Semple added.
Purchased by the City of Trenton in 1859, the TWW system grew by constructing the open Pennington Avenue Reservoir in 1899 and the original water-filtration plant in 1914. In the last 50 years, TWW infrastructure has undergone numerous capital improvements, creating a sprawling system that consists of a water-filtration plant, an open reservoir, three pump stations, more than 8,000 valves, 3,578 fire hydrants, and six interconnections between TWW and other water suppliers.
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