A HGV driver has become a social media star after his act of kindness helping an older person to cross the road went viral.

Malino Wilson, a driver with Explore Transport, was returning to his depot in Oldbury in the West Midlands when he spotted the woman attempting to cross the road with her shopping.

Rather than drive past, Wilson decided to stop and help here. He pulled his truck over and temporarily stopped the traffic while he got out of his cab and helped the lady across the road.

It was only much later that Mr Wilson realised his good deed had not gone un-noticed, after a driver waiting behind his truck filmed the scene and posted it on social media. Since it was posted, the story has been shared more than 31,000 times.

Wilson knows the area, and knew it was a dangerous place to cross. “I could see the lady was struggling to push her shopping bag down the curb, so I went out to help her,” he said.

“My parents brought me up to respect the elderly and vulnerable people, and I just knew it was the right thing to do.”

The driver has worked for Explore Transport for a year, working on a contract with Cemex, and has been trained to understand the needs of pedestrians by his employer and via their membership of FORS, the Fleet Operator Recognition Scheme, which strives to raise operational standards in road transport.

John Whitehurst, head of Mixer Division at Explore Transport, said: “We are thrilled to see one of our drivers act in such a caring way. Malino is a lovely bloke and deserves all the positive responses he is getting, he is a credit to us at Explore, and to the truck driving profession.”

FORS manager Sonia Hayward added: “It is really heart-warming to see how Malino helped this lady get to a safe place. Professional drivers are very skilled and do a very hard job negotiating increasingly busier roads, often with little recognition from the public, so it is great to see Malino’s actions recognised with such positivity.”