Rivers are probably easier to start on, making them the short-term bet. Railroads can cover a lot more territory, making them the long-term project, in my opinion. IMO, MilGov should get to work on securing the lower Mississippi with a goodly portion of the returning European armies (with ships, boats, and sailors!), and following navigable tributaries as far as possible. That's the 2001 project.
Getting a railroad network up & running should follow from that. That should start in 2001, with a goal of moving things about by 2002.
As an aside, I'd get to work using as much of the shipping available in and around the Gulf, making contact with Florida, Texas, and points in between. Somewhere in there is oil-- production and infrastructure to be salvaged.
Getting the airships from the Ozarks would be icing on the cake.
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My Twilight claim to fame: I ran "Allegheny Uprising" at Allegheny College, spring of 1988.
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