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NSW authorities have levied a penalty against an US-based online influencer and served two driving violation citations for reported negligent driving after a swarm of e-bike riders gathered on the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the busy commute on Tuesday.

The Event: A Prohibited Ride

A group of around 40 individuals riding electric bikes and motorbikes proceeded along the primary roadway of the bridge, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The riders subsequently reversed direction and rode through the city’s CBD and Haymarket.

"There was a risk of serious injury or fatalities," remarked a senior police official the officer on the following day.

Law enforcement indicated they did not immediately pursue the riders 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.

Fines Imposed for Influencer

Later in the week, authorities announced they had issued the American online personality known as Sur Ronster, twenty-six, with two violation tickets for negligent driving (not involving death or prior injury), carrying a penalty of $562 and three demerit points each, in relation to the bridge ride-out. Officials noted that the investigation is ongoing.

The influencer is said to have more than 3.4 million followers on one platform and more than 1.2 million on the social media app.

Influencer's Comments

The online figure gave comments to a major newspaper this week following the event spread rapidly on digital platforms, saying he regretted giving "the biking community" a bad reputation.

"I’ll probably take responsibility. That was among the safest gatherings I have witnessed," he told the publication. "I am a visitor here, so I’m going to abide by the rules and standards of Sydney. When I decided to do a meet and greet it did not involve a ride-out, it was just to say hi near the bridge."

"I did not know the area well, it was my fault we ended up on the bridge and I had a decision to make: either the group completes the entirety of the bridge and comes back, which is a crime. Or we reverse, essentially, before we’re on the bridge. I chose at the time to turn around."

National Debate on E-Bike Regulation

The increase of e-bikes on roads nationwide has sparked increasing demands for regulation. The federal health minister, the minister, commented that illegal ebikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Young people have engaged in stupid things on bikes since the invention of the penny-farthing [but] the harm that are presenting at our ERs are truly severe," he stated. "We’ve got to ensure we prevent these things entering the country [and] officers are granted the authority to take strong action, to take them away, to crush them, to destroy them."

The state recorded 226 injuries associated with electric bikes in 2024. However, in the first seven months of 2025, that figure surged to 233 injuries plus four deaths.