West Coast Shuttle owner Cedric Trounson was driving the bus to Christchurch on Thursday morning when he found an injured kea on the road, with five others trying to help it, after the bird was struck by a vehicle.
He put the kea in the bus and drove it to the Department of Conservation at Arthur's Pass, which in turn took it to Christchurch for treatment.
Doc ranger Helen Nugteren said the bird, whose spine was broken, was put down.
She also found a dead kea on the road yesterday morning.
In some cases, drivers were going too fast, she said.
``[Kea] are inquisitive and not in a hurry to get out of the way.''
She suggested NZ Transport Agency signs warning kea were in the area and some way of slowing traffic through the alpine village.
Doc field centre supervisor Chris Stewart said he was aware of four or five bird deaths in the past few months.
Mr Trounson also appealed for people travelling through Arthur's Pass to take more care.
``There are currently a lot of juvenile kea, just fresh out of the nest, but they are still learning and have been playing on the road.''
Last week, a kea was hit by a 4WD and remained stuck in the grille - still alive - all the way to Christchurch, where it later died from its injuries, Mr Trounson said.
