Metro council got its first glimpse Wednesday of a traffic streamlining program that will eventually cost taxpayers as much as $250 million.

The streets and transit division invited the elected councillors and the press to a sneak preview of WATS (Winnipeg Area Transportation Study).

Boris Hryhorczuk, Metro's traffic planning engineer and head of WATS, used a series of slides, maps and diagrams to explain a detailed progress report on the study.

The report indicated the 25-year program of expressways, rapid transit, subways, overpasses and bridges will run as high as $250 million.

The exact routes of future expressways and other traffic improvements are not available. All Metro can deal with now are generalities.

Highlights of the progress report are:

• An elaborate inner-circumferential highway around the residential areas of Metro Winnipeg.
• A "loop" immediately around the downtown area, with exits for motorists to dart in and out of the downtown core.
• Provision for rail rapid transit serving the entire Metro area.
• The number of motor vehicles will double by 1986, putting twice the strain on Metro Winnipeg's already congested streets.
• The population will be about 900,000 by 1986.

Coun. Jack Willis, chairman of planning committee, said the program is expensive but it will raise the assessment of the area, making land more valuable downtown.

SPREAD COST

The cost, he added, will also be spread over a large number of years.

"It's staggering and frightening," said Coun. Bert Fisher. "But you can't do what you want to without involving expenditure."

If we didn't plan for future traffic requirements in Metro Winnipeg, said Coun. Bernie Wolfe, you'd have "bumper to bumper paralysis" in 25 years.

Mr. Hryhorczuk's report said the streets and traffic division has to plan for a "population explosion" in Metro Winnipeg's suburbs -- St. Vital, Transcona, North Kildonan, Assiniboia and Charleswood.

EIGHT ARTERIES

About eight expressways connecting several suburbs to the central city (at a cost of $8 million a mile) are planned.

Bridges shown in the progress report were at Carriere St. in St. Vital and between the existing Maryland St. and Osborne St. bridges in south Winnipeg.

Transit director D. I. MacDonald said one of the prime reasons for establishing a Metro government here was to provide for a proper planning authority to oversee a program like WATS.

Unlike other major centres, Metro is in the unique position of being able to implement such a plan. Mr. MacDonald said several months ago many cities spend large amounts of money for a single attack on traffic problems and then don't have the authority to implement the resulting plan.

NOT IN FORCE

Metro Toronto's master plan has never been put into force.

The entire traffic study is expected to take about two more years to develop.

Mr. MacDonald said it isn't likely underground subways will ever serve the Metro area on a wide scale. Subways cost about $15 to $20 million a mile and are "a very costly method o finding an exclusive right-of-way."

Subways may someday be used in the congested downtown core over an area of a few miles.

Mr. MacDonald said consideration is being given to providing rapid rail transit to handle traffic in future years.

The interim report will be shown to member municipality representatives next.