This is the 8458th most frequent Russian word.
начата
"Начата" means "started" or "initiated" (feminine form, past passive participle).
Here 'начата' is the past passive participle form of 'начать', used to indicate that the work ('работа') was initiated by someone in the past.
Работа над проектом была начата в прошлом году.
The work on the project was started last year.
In this case, 'начата' emphasizes the start of the expedition as a deliberate action, possibly by an unspecified agent.
Экспедиция была начата несмотря на погодные условия.
The expedition was started despite the weather conditions.
Here, 'начат' (masculine form) is used to describe the initiation of the road repair, showing agreement with the masculine noun 'ремонт'.