To get RT3 working on a Vista 64 bit computer, download the 1.03 patch. Unzip the RT3.exe file. Then delete the original RT3.exe file that installed with the game and replace it with the unzipped one from the patch. I just did this and it works great.

Working great for me. I'm running the game at 1440x900 resolution with ultra high graphic settings.

What I did:
1) Installed the game using the original 2-disc set by Gathering of Developers (did not install it in the default \Program Files, if that matters).
2) Installed the Coast to Coast expansion (which includes patch 1.04).
3) Installed patch 1.04 beta over it.

I did not need to set any compatibility mode or admin rights.

Note that I also tried patch 1.05, but it made the game crash immediately after the PopCap screen at the beginning.

My system specs:
Windows Vista Home Premium 32 bit
2 GB RAM
nVidia GeForce 8800 GTX 768 MB
Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeGamer

Patch 1.03 reversion work fine for me runing in vista 32 and nvidia 9600gt card... thanks...

I'm running Windows 7, but I had the same problem as everyone else who's posted here. The fix was to start the game with one of the older patches that works, disable Hardware T&L in the game options, and then switch back to 1.05. Disabling Hardware T&L is supposed to decrease performance, but I've played the game with the expansion and patch 1.05 for hours so far without a single problem or crash of any kind, and no noticeable performance loss.

So apparently I'm having a similar problem as many of the others. I have Windows Vista 32 w/nvidia card and the screen flashes on then straight off. Does anyone have a specific answer for a non-literate computer gamer?

What you need to do is get hold of version 1.03

Install this version and go to the graphics options.

Tick "Disable hardware T&L"
Click through the dialog box you get about this setting.

re-install your latest version and you should now be able to play.

Do not untick "Disable hardware T&L" otherwise you'll break it again.

For more info on this fix go here

http://hawkdawg.com/rrt/rrt3/rrt3.htm\

In compatability mode it works fine

Same thing as everyone else, menu appears for a brief moment then crashes. I installed patch 1.02, 1.03, coast to coast, and 1.05. still crashed. but after installing these updates i read this article and can confirm that running the 1.03 patch again will fix this. in vista you will still need to run in administrative privilages so the cd protection driver will load.

ok it doesnt work in windows 7 or vista
I used steam to buy it

I tryed to download the coast to coast expantion it says it shall fix the problem to windows 7 and vista but it didnt work in steam

Same problems as everybody else. I put in the C2C expansion, but replaced the .exe with the 1.05 executable and added the -s9 commandline switch to the desktop shortcut . Compatibity mode for winxp 3, run as administrator. I was able to start the game (highest settings), but the game crashed after a few minutes trying to do a autosave for which it did not get the right permissions.

Somebody else posted this and I would like to thank them and confirm that the fix worked for me, too. I went through the long thread and tried all the suggestions to no avail, then this did the trick simply and elegantly and will hopefully work for others.

I am using Windows 7 Ultimate. The fix is listed as a Vista fix, so it should work for both Vista and Windows 7, since it worked for me.

As was mentioned numerous times, the problem is caused by the graphics setting for "Disable Hardware T&L." The box should be checked to disable it, but it is unchecked by default, after you install the game. Since the game crashes, you cannot easily change the setting.

The fix is to download the patch, which is simply a new "engine.cfg" file. This contains the game settings. You simply copy the file to your Data/Configuration folder, inside your RRT 3 folder, overwriting the original file, and voila, the problem is fixed. The new configuration file disables the hardware T&L for you. The fix works for both V. 1.05 and 1.06.

To get the fix, go to: http://hawkdawg.com/rrt/rrt3/rrt3.htm

Towards the middle of the page, look for this:

*****
Now Available!
Added: Oct. 4, 2009
A fix has been created that will allow RT3 Versions 1.05 and 1.06 to work on Vista machines.
Vista Fix - 771 bytes - Read Me
2627 Downloads
See this thread in the forum for more details.
*****

Simply click on the Vista Fix link to download it.

Good luck to everyone.

How to fix this issue... (My setup is Windows 7 x64, but I suspect it fixes it under everything).

Install game. Try and play the game - if it works fine, otherwise you need to do the following:

Download 1.4 beta patch from here: http://www.gamershell.com/download_5729.shtml

Now patch the game to 1.4, & run it, it should work, even without needing compatibility modes (if it still fails, try using compatibility mode for Windows 2000.

Right, so either you have the running 1.00 or a running 1.04. Go into settings and disable Hardware T&L. Exit game.

Now you can patch the game to include the coast to coast add on and the 1.05 patch, they all work.

The bug is obviously in the Transform and Lighting engine, by disabling it, the problem goes away.

Happy tycooning!

i've just installed the game, but it doesn't work. when i click on any title in the main menu, I receive the following error message, then the game crashes:

Program Error
Pack element rt3_ButBigSetupDown.wav not found


I tried all the possibile combinations, suggestions and patched listed above. I have windows 7

solution to #42368: simply reboot the system after installing the game

it's a problem about the sound. you can disable the sound by adding -s3:

Right click on the RT3 shortcut and chose "properties". Click shortcut tab and in the TARGET field change the line to read as follows:
"Railroad Tycoon 3 installation folder RT3.EXE" -s3

Ok solved :D Install game normal if you don’t have original game install buy demon tools and install patch 1.03 and nocd patch start the game. Go to options graphics and mark disable Hardware T&L and start a game. Now you have working game. Now download and install an extension coast to coast and install it. When you install a coast to coast you can't start a game so just patch it with 1.05 and nocd and start again. Game works fine with me. I try a fix that is been develop but it didn’t work for me, so use it like these and you have a working game. Thanks to all previous post for all the hard work it help me to come to these problems solved.