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NSW police have issued a fine against an US-based online influencer and served two traffic infringement notices for alleged reckless operation following a swarm of e-bike riders gathered on the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the busy commute on a weekday.

The Event: An Illegal Gathering

A group of around 40 individuals operating electric bikes and motorbikes travelled along the bridge’s main deck, where cycling is prohibited. The riders subsequently reversed direction and traveled through the downtown area and a nearby district.

"There was potential for serious injury or fatalities," remarked a senior police official David Driver on the following day.

Law enforcement indicated they did not immediately pursue the group due to concerns for public safety but rather found the group at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair near the Botanic Gardens, at which point they broke up.

Penalties Issued for Content Creator

Later in the week, police stated they had issued the American online personality known as Sur Ronster, 26, with two traffic infringement notices for negligent driving (not involving death or prior injury), with a fine of over five hundred dollars and three demerit points each, connected to the bridge ride-out. Officials noted that inquiries were continuing.

The personality reportedly has over 3.4m followers on YouTube and over 1.2m on the social media app.

Creator's Response

The online figure spoke with a major newspaper recently following the event gained traction on news sites and social media, stating he regretted giving "the biking community" a bad reputation.

"I accept the blame. It was among the safest ride-outs I have witnessed," he said. "I’m coming here as a guest, and I intend to come here respecting the laws and norms of the city. So when I decided to do a meet and greet it did not involve a group ride, it was just to say hi near the bridge."

"I’m unfamiliar with the city, it was my fault we ended up on the bridge and I had two choices: whether the group rides the full length of the bridge and comes back, which is a crime. Or we turn around, basically, before we’re on the bridge. I chose at the time to turn around."

National Debate on E-Bike Regulation

The spate of e-bikes on roads nationwide has sparked growing calls for regulation. A senior government official, the minister, commented that illegal ebikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Young people have engaged in reckless acts on bikes ever since the early bicycle [but] the harm that are coming into our ERs are truly severe," the minister said. "We’ve got to ensure we stop these things entering the country [and] officers are given the authority to take strong action, to take them away, to crush them, to dispose of them."

NSW recorded over two hundred injuries associated with electric bikes in 2024. However, in the first seven months of the following year, that figure surged to two hundred thirty-three injuries plus four deaths.