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New South Wales police have issued a fine against an US-based online influencer and handed out two driving violation citations for reported negligent driving after a large group of electric bicycle users gathered on the famous Sydney landmark during peak-hour traffic on Tuesday.

The Event: A Prohibited Ride

A gathering of approximately 40 people riding electric bikes and motorbikes proceeded along the primary roadway of the bridge, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The assembly subsequently reversed direction and traveled through the city’s CBD and a nearby district.

"This had potential for serious injury or fatalities," stated NSW police assistant commissioner 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 assembly at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair near the Botanic Gardens, at which point they broke up.

Fines Imposed for Influencer

Later in the week, police stated they had issued the American online personality who goes by Sur Ronster, twenty-six, with two violation tickets for careless operation (not involving death or prior injury), carrying a penalty of over five hundred dollars and penalty points each, in relation to the bridge incident. They added that inquiries were continuing.

The influencer reportedly has more than 3.4m followers on one platform and more than 1.2 million on the social media app.

Creator's Response

The online figure spoke with a local publication this week following the event spread rapidly on digital platforms, saying he was sorry for giving "bike life" a negative image.

"I’ll probably take responsibility. That was among the safest gatherings I have witnessed," he said. "I’m coming here as a guest, so I’m going to come here respecting the rules and standards of the city. So when I decided to do a public meeting it was not meant to include a ride-out, it was just to greet people under the bridge."

"I’m unfamiliar with the city, I am to blame we ended up on the bridge and I had two choices: either the group completes the entirety of the bridge and turns around, which is a crime. Or we turn around, essentially, before we’re on the bridge. I chose at the time to go back."

Broader Context on E-Bike Regulation

The spate of electric bicycles on roads nationwide has prompted growing calls for regulation. A senior government official, the minister, commented that non-compliant electric bikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Kids have done stupid things on bikes ever since the early bicycle [but] the injuries that are presenting at our hospital emergency departments are truly severe," he stated. "We’ve got to make sure we prevent these things entering the country [and] officers are granted the powers to crack down, to take them away, to destroy them, to dispose of them."

The state recorded over two hundred injuries related to electric bikes in 2024. But, in the initial half of the following year, that figure surged to two hundred thirty-three injuries plus four fatalities.