A speed camera on a “horrific” stretch of the A90 Dundee to Aberdeen road has been out of commission for more than a year.
Transport Scotland has confirmed the roadside camera at Mill O’ Forest near Stonehaven is still to be replaced after it was set alight in March last year.
It said a decision was taken not to replace the film camera and instead wait for the impending roll-out of digital models.
A fatal accident around 10 miles south of the site this month has served to highlight the dangers of the route, with Nigel Don MSP expressing concerns over the full 20 miles between Brechin and Stonehaven.
He said: “For the past year, the speed camera on this dangerous stretch of A90 has been broken, jeopardising the safety of drivers.
“I hope that Transport Scotland addresses this issue promptly as it has been over two months since they announced that the camera would be fixed in a matter of weeks.
“I applaud the recently announced investment in upgrading all wet film safety cameras in Scotland, and look forward to working with Transport Scotland to ensure that the dangerous stretch of the A90 is addressed.”
The choice to leave the camera out of commission for such a lengthy period has provoked anger from roads campaigners, who claim it should have been replaced immediately.
Stonehaven councillor Wendy Agnew said it was “not before time” for the camera to be replaced and urged drivers to take extra care until it is fixed.
Vandals set fire to the camera, which is positioned on the northbound carriageway, early on March 6 last year.
Grampian Fire and Rescue was called to put out the fire and police condemned the act as “highly irresponsible” after the device sustained extensive damage.
Mobile enforcement cameras have been deployed in the Stonehaven area at times to fill the gap and the damaged device has been covered with an orange hood.
A Transport Scotland spokeswoman said: “The police and North East Safety Camera Partnership (Nescamp) remain committed to ensuring this camera is replaced as quickly as possible and we continue to work with them to ensure this happens.
“The new camera had been due to be installed earlier but a combination of factors, including severe weather, prevented this from happening at the time.
“Plans are now in place to have it installed within the coming weeks.
“In the meantime, regular deployment of mobile enforcement cameras is supporting strong levels of compliance with the speed limit.”