A bad idea is still an idea, no matter how poor the cost-performance ratio, as long as it can save lives in critical moments, the Tsarist Government could only accept it.
By the end of 1904 in the original timeline, the Siberian Railway had been inaugurated, although it could not operate normally, it still managed to dispatch a few train cars on average each day.
Do not underestimate these inconspicuous few train cars; in critical moments, these supplies could even determine the outcome of a war.
Gaps always need to be filled, and in desperation, the Tsarist Government actually turned to smuggling trade.
After the European wars ended, air forces tacitly chose to phase out airships, except for a few transport airships, basically, the skies were dominated by aeroplanes.
The Russian Empire had its airship troops as well, but due to cost-effectiveness, their scale remained very small.