Ellen O'dwyer

A half-a-billion dollar price-tag for rolling out water meters in Wellington is not "credible", says the mayor, and he expects the new water entity to start from scratch on a business case.

Wellington City Council has voted overwhelmingly in favour of a 5.8 percent residential rates rise in the annual plan, when Wellingtonians will soon start to pay for water rates separately.

A Wellington councillor who quit a sub-committee a week ago is still at loggerheads with the city mayor over his involvement at a search and rescue operation during Wellington's floods.

A one-hundred million dollar injection into Auckland and Wellington's train network is a much-needed boost for public transport, councillors in both cities say.

Wellingtonians are facing slightly lower water bills, as the region's new water entity backs down on an initial set of prices in the face of public concern.

Wellington's mayor has hit out at the government's timeline for amalgamating councils, saying it's not enough time for residents to make a major decision.

Several people have been injured when a train derailed on the Johnsonville line, between Box Hill and Khandallah stations in Wellington.

Two pieces of timber is being cited as the cause of a recent major sewage spill in Wellington, in which streams of poo and waste flowed down a main street.

It will cost $25 billion over the next three decades to fix Wellington's failing water infrastructure, deliver a safe water supply and keep harbours and beaches clean, the new water entity says.

The tin is most certainly full, and Wellington's leaders say the Hurricanes jubilant campaign to reach the Super Rugby finals is a glimmer of brightness amid a tough few months for the capital.