ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) — RG&E announced on Thursday that they will start installing smart meters across the Greater Rochester Area in April.

According to the utility, around 700,000 smart electric and natural gas meters will be installed throughout the counties of Monroe, Wayne, Livingston, Genesee, and Orleans. This will take place through 2025. The specific time frames include:

  • Rochester: Between April 2023 through December 2025.
  • Sodus: Between May 2023 through November 2023.
  • Canandaigua: Between August 2023 through November 2023.
  • Fillmore: Between August 2024 through October 2024.

RG&e first announced the installation of these meters back in February with the idea that they will give their customers control over how much energy they use. Once they see how much they use, they can determine how much they’ll pay — meaning they’ll no longer have to rely on meter reads.

In addition, if a customer with a smart meter loses power, they won’t need to call RG&E. The utility would be notified immediately about the outage.

Residents and businesses can expect the new smart meter soon, but RG&E says that some larger businesses will keep the existing meters. Upgrades will take place on Mondays through Fridays between 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Customers are told to expect a brief power interruption during these installations.

RG&E has also provided a smart meter map on their website, which can be found here. Their first open house will be at Greece Town Hall on April 11 between 5-7 p.m.