AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Water is expected to replace meters all over town to try and reduce the amount of water the utility loses.

A previous KXAN investigation found Austin lost more than six billion gallons of water in 2018, mostly because of pipe breaks and leaks.

That number has gone up in the last few years, costing the city millions of dollars every year.

The utility told City Council’s Water Oversight Committee it plans to invest nearly $100 million in a new meter infrastructure system with a more digital approach.

The cost breakdown includes the meters and installation, data network maintenance and a portal customers will be able to use to track their own water usage.

Austin Water Director Greg Meszaros says the battery powered metering infrastructure will allow the utility and customers alike to track water leaks more quickly.

Right now, the city fixes 72% of its leaks within a day. Utility officials believe this Advanced Metering Infrastructure, or “AMI,” will bring that number up.

“This will give us knowledge of leaks that we wouldn’t normally be able to see because they never come to the surface,” said Meszaros.

He added, “These are tools that we just don’t have right now in our current meter system.”

The plan is to install 250,000 new meters in the next five years.

Before the city begins installing the first 5,000 meters through a pilot program, City Council will have to approve contracts with the utility vendors at the end of the month.

Many of Austin’s water meters are 15 to 20 years old and toward the end of their useful life, officials said Thursday.

For years, KXAN has been highlighting the city’s aging utility infrastructure, which also includes cast-iron pipes built in the 1930s.

The city has not met its original goal of replacing 10 miles of these pipes every year, having replaced a total of 43 miles, and relocated another 42 since 2012.

Meszaros said he’s not changing expectations for that goal, even with the increased investment in digital meters.

He did say despite the infrastructure improvements, customers won’t see an increase in their bill anytime soon.

“We have not raised rates since 2017,” he said. “We do not have plans to raise rates for the next several years.”