DANIEL W. HOYT AUTOBIOGRAPHY
Submitted by Charles M. Hoyt, December, 2002
Dan went to the Univ of Illinois at Champaign. He told that when he was first enrolled, he was assigned to a certain room in a dorm. The other person assigned to this same room, whom he did not know, asked him ," Where did you get a name like Wham for a middle name ?" Dan replied that it was a family name. The other guy said, " thats really strange, because I'm here on a scholarship from Wham & Wham in Centralia, Illinois". It turned out that his mother had worked for years as a secretary for Wham & Wham. His name was Jim Brady and he went on to become President Ronald Reagan's press secretary and was shot in the head by John Hinckley in an assassination attempt. His wife, Sarah, pushed to enact what was called the 'Brady Bill'. This was to ensure that prospective gun buyers would have a background check before each sale.
Dan died of heart failure at age 50.
Dans obituary from the Civil Engineering Alumni Association Newsletter, University of Illinois, Winter 1991-92
Daniel W. Hoyt (BS'63) - (1940 - 1991)
Daniel W. Hoyt, a Fellow of ITE and a senior transportation engineer with Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan, Inc., in Miami, Florida, died on April 19, 1991, at the age of 50.
Hoyt had served as an officer in the New York Upstate Section from 1974 to 1976 and in District 1 in 1977, from 1978 to 1980, he served as an international director from District 1. In 1990 he served as a Transit Council director.
Hoyt began his professional career as a traffic accident engineer in the central office of Illinois Division of Highways. He later joined Alan M. Vorhees & Associates in Washington, D.C. and McLean Virginia area. Hoyt went on to establish the firms' office in Buffalo, New York.
In 1972, Hoyt became Commissioner of Transportation for the city of Buffalo. In that capacity he organized and administered the new Department of Transportation and was responsible for all facets of traffic engineering, transportation planning, and parking and transit operations.
After five years with DOT, Hoyt became the manager of the Office of Planning and Environment and then the Office of Engineering.
He was instrumental in the planning and development of the light rail program for the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority.
Hoyt then served as rail planning coordinator of the city of Dallas, Texas, where he reviewed station area plans, planning criteria, and development of alignments and engineering concepts.
Hoyt had been with Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan since 1989. He directed a variety of traffic, transit, and corridor projects, including a feasibility study for a new tunnel serving the Port of Miami seaport facility.
Hoyt is survived by his wife and four children.