Vanessa Roach was delighted when she won her campaign to have a speed camera returned to her road which had been plagued by boy racers.

Ms Roach collected 200 signatures to have the safety device reinstalled at Frindsbury Hill in Strood.

Months later she became suspicious when she saw a police car speeding past the camera but it did not flash. She sent off a freedom of information request asking how many drivers had been caught and found out none had.

She said this week: “Have we all just been duped? It seems so, as not one motorist has been issued with a speeding ticket from the moment it went up to November 30, last year. It seems like it has never worked so have we been fobbed off?”

She had called on Medway Council and the Kent and Medway Safety Camera Partnership to reinstall the camera last year after it was removed in December 2012 when an inspection showed it corroding.

Mrs Roach, who works at the Williams chemist in Frindsbury Road, Strood, was ecstatic in July last year when she saw engineers reinstalling it.

The next day she had been due to ask a question about her concerns at a full Medway Council meeting.

She had been approached by neighbours and customers who told her about speeding youths driving to Medway City Estate to race each other and had decided to act.

Despite police introducing dispersal orders to ease the problem of boy racers, they had returned after the orders ran out.

A Medway Council spokesman said: “We are aware that there have been some technical difficulties with the fixed speed camera at Frindsbury Hill and it will be repaired as soon as possible to ensure it is operating as it should 24 hours a day.

“The safety of the public is our main priority and therefore we would urge motorists to drive safely on all of Medway’s roads.”