ITD appoints 35-Year engineering veteran Dave Kuisti as chief deputy

The following is a news release from the Idaho Transportation Department:

BOISE, Idaho – The Idaho Transportation Department has appointed Dave Kuisti as ITD Chief Deputy.

Kuisti has worked at ITD for 35 years. He has served in several engineering roles throughout his career, including design engineer in North Idaho, an engineering manager in Boise and district engineer in Lewiston. He has most recently served as chief engineer and division administrator over Highways Construction & Operations.

Kuisti is now responsible for overseeing more than 12,000 lane miles of highways and more than 1,800 bridges on the State Highway System. He will lead nearly 1,200 employees across multiple work areas, including the six district offices across the state, Highway Development and Highway Construction & Operations.

“Dave is an excellent leader who is well-prepared to take on this critical role in our agency,” said Director Scott Stokes. “His technical experience and leadership skills will serve him well as we continue our work to deliver a safe and mobile transportation network to the people of Idaho.”

Kuisti is a licensed civil engineer who graduated from the University of Idaho with a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering.

Kuisti replaces Dan McElhinney, who had served in the role since 2022.