Our say: Editor's notebook

CONGESTION'S HAZARDS - It's natural to talk about the extra construction delays on the Bay Bridge from the point of view of bridge-bound drivers caught in long backups, or local residents trapped by paralyzed traffic.

But more is involved here than mere inconvenience. As our story on Sunday pointed out, the traffic mess has also lengthened emergency response times in Queen Anne's County.

Traffic problems have added an estimated 10 minutes to firefighters' response times and have forced ambulances to take patients to Easton Memorial Hospital rather than Anne Arundel Medical Center, which is normally 10 or 15 minutes...