APTA is encouraging the public to help the environment by using public transit for this year's Earth Day on Sunday, April 22. The following is a sampling of some of the transit-related Earth Day announcements and activities across the nation:

• Metro Transit (Minneapolis) will power the entire Hiawatha light rail system by wind and offer free rides on its 3 hybrid-electric buses on Earth Day (150 hybrid electric buses will be ordered before the end of this year).

• RI Public Transit Authority (Providence, RI) will offer free trips on two routes to the Earth Day Festival.

• King County (Wash.) Metro, Sound Transit (Seattle) and Community Transit (Snohomish County, Wash.) are offering free rides on all buses on Earth Day.

• The Rapid (Grand Rapids, Mich.) will begin to run hybrid-electric buses with the inaugural run on Monday, April 23.

• Metropolitan Transportation Authority (N.Y.) will exhibit a hybrid-electric bus at the New York City EarthFair festival and distribute a limited number of free MetroCards.

• Metro (Cincinnati) will make an announcement that all its buses will run on a 50% soybean based biodiesel blend.

• Toledo (Ohio) Area Regional Transit Authority will run only biodiesel-fueled buses during its service hours on Earth Day

• Phoenix Public Transit will be celebrating the first arrival of more than 126 new clean-burning fuel (ultra-low sulfur diesel) buses in a pre-Earth Day event on April 19.