A new round of state funding will help the Great Redwood Trail Agency begin upgrading trail segments, including a 7.7-mile stretch through Loleta that has long been constrained by aging rail infrastructure.
The agency recently received $12.4 million for projects along the planned 307-mile Great Redwood Trail, a multiuse trail that will follow a former railroad corridor from the San Francisco Bay Area to Humboldt Bay.
The funding will support two major construction projects in Humboldt and Mendocino counties, while $10 million is earmarked for smaller improvements that can make unfinished sections more accessible as planning continues.
One of those projects focuses on the Loleta segment, where a partially collapsed railroad tunnel and an aging railroad bridge have stalled larger trail improvements. Both structures must be assessed before rehabilitation work can begin.
Trail Development Manager Leah Mancabelli said the agency is looking for opportunities to improve communities along the corridor while larger construction projects remain in development.
"We're looking to ... do things that make the community better related to what we can do on the GRTA corridor," Mancabelli said.
According to the agency's master plan, crews plan to remove the railroad tracks through Loleta by the end of the year, making it easier for residents to cross the corridor.
The work is part of the agency's "quick-build" program, which would create a temporary multiuse trail surfaced with native soil or crushed stone while the agency seeks funding for a permanent trail.
The funding comes from California's Proposition 4, the climate bond voters approved in 2024. The Great Redwood Trail Agency received $50 million from the measure for trail improvements, and the newly released $12.4 million is its first allocation from those funds.