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NSW police have levied a penalty against an US-based online influencer and served 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 Incident: An Illegal Gathering

A group of approximately 40 people operating electric bikes and motorbikes travelled along the bridge’s main deck, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The assembly then turned around and traveled through the downtown area and Haymarket.

"There was potential for people to be injured and killed," remarked a senior police official the officer on the following day.

Police indicated they did not chase right away the riders due to safety concerns but rather found the assembly at a scenic Sydney lookout near the Botanic Gardens, where they dispersed.

Fines Imposed for Content Creator

On Saturday, police stated they had served the US social media influencer who goes by the influencer, twenty-six, with two violation tickets for careless operation (with no death or previous bodily harm), with a fine of $562 and penalty points each, connected to the bridge ride-out. They added that the investigation is ongoing.

The personality reportedly has more than 3.4m subscribers on one platform and over 1.2 million on Instagram.

Influencer's Comments

The online figure spoke with a major newspaper recently after the incident gained traction on digital platforms, stating he regretted giving "bike life" a bad reputation.

"I accept the blame. It was one of the safest gatherings I’ve ever seen," he said. "I’m coming here as a guest, and I intend to abide by the rules and standards of Sydney. So when I decided to do a public meeting it did not involve a group ride, it was just to greet people under the bridge."

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

National Debate on E-Bike Regulation

The spate of electric bicycles on streets across the country has prompted growing calls for regulation. The federal health minister, Mark Butler, commented that illegal ebikes were a "total menace on the road."

"Young people have engaged in reckless acts on bikes since the invention of the penny-farthing [but] the harm that are presenting at our hospital emergency departments are truly severe," he stated. "We’ve got to ensure we prevent these things entering the country [and] officers are given the powers to take strong action, to take them away, to crush them, to dispose of them."

NSW recorded 226 injuries associated with ebikes in 2024. However, in the initial half of the following year, that number surged to 233 injuries plus four fatalities.