A Bristol City Council parking machine repair man has appeared in court charged with stealing more than £70,000 from meters.

Arthur Blay, 48, is accused of 24 counts of theft while working on repairing and maintaining parking machines for the authority.

He is alleged to have carried out the thefts between January 2003 and October 2008 on meters across Bristol, including taking £600 from machines outside the Council House in College Green.

Blay, now living in Victoria Road, Fleur-de-Lis, Gwent, is said to have deposited the money in his bank account.

He appeared at Bristol Magistrates’ Court to answer the charges but did not indicate a plea. The case was adjourned to January 15 when it will be transferred to the crown court.

Blay was given conditional bail.

Bristol has around 300 parking machines and the council is understood to make about £1 million annually from on-street parking minus costs for repairs and maintenance.