A RR/road to Nome from Fairbanks would not be crossing the Alaska Range. Doesn’t mean that it would be an easy project, just that the Alaska Range wouldn’t be a factor.
I agree that a railroad into the state from Canada would be very helpful but that would be a much bigger project and there your mountains really are a big barrier. As far as I know the RR comes as far north as Dawson Creek, BC. Mile 0 of the Alaska Highway. 1400 miles or so to Fairbanks.
As far as “The Bridge to Nowhere”, that’s a cute moniker but it ignores the fact that many nowheres become somewheres after a bridge connects them. The question is, is there enough potential somewhere on Gravina Island to make the bridge worthwhile? I don’t know. I lived in Ketchikan many years ago. Taking the ferry to the airport was annoying but it wasn’t that big a deal.
As to Ketchikan, the residents are at the mercy of the ferry.....ferry not running means no airplanes out. Not a pleasant thought if you want to get to Granny's funeral in Chicago, or need to get airlifted to a heart clinic in Anchorage.
Sure, they have done without it to now, but look at Western AK.....EVERY indian village has a Federal airport, paid by us. Easier for them to get access to air than for the residents of AK's 5th largest city.
Shoulda been built, but sleazy politics got in the way. A pox on them.