Public opposition grows to including Mendocino Railway (Skunk Train) in regional transportation plan
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Summary
Public commenters urged MCOG to remove Mendocino Railway (the "Skunk Train") from the 2026 Regional Transportation Plan, arguing it is a tourist excursion that should not receive public funds; staff said legal status remains unsettled after recent appellate action and the plan includes language that MCOG will not provide direct financial support.
Public testimony at the Mendocino Council of Governments meeting on Feb. 2 focused heavily on whether the privately owned Mendocino Railway, commonly called the Skunk Train, should be included in the county’s Regional Transportation Plan and Active Transportation Plan.
Multiple speakers, including Peter McNamee, summarized letters and comments asserting the Skunk Train is an excursion/tourist service not intended or equipped to provide regular public transportation. A range of written and oral comments urged MCOG to remove Mendocino Railway from the RTP, arguing inclusion could be used to justify federal rail funding or land-use actions such as eminent domain. One public comment summarized an opinion often repeated in the written submissions: “The Skunk Train is not public transportation” and should not receive taxpayer dollars.
Staff acknowledged receipt of numerous written comments and summarized them at the meeting. Staff also told the board there has been recent judicial activity affecting the train’s legal status: an appellate court decision earlier in the month reversed a prior ruling and said the operator could be a public utility with eminent-domain authority, leaving the legal question unsettled for now. Staff emphasized the RTP text already specifies that MCOG “does not provide direct financial support or participation in management/programming of improvement for railroad operations.”
Board members discussed that the rail element of the RTP is primarily informational and that MCOG’s involvement is limited in practice to elements where MCOG has funding authority (local streets and roads, active transportation and specified transit projects). Staff said the rail section recognizes excursion service and includes no current MCOG-funded rail projects; it does note potential future opportunities such as letters of support or bus-rail connections.
The board did not take immediate action to remove the Skunk Train from the draft plan; staff said the RTP will be brought back for adoption in March pending HCD approval of the RHNA methodology and further edits in response to public input.
