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New South Wales police have issued a fine against an American social media personality and handed out two traffic infringement notices for alleged negligent driving after a swarm of electric bicycle users gathered on the Sydney Harbour Bridge during the busy commute on a weekday.

The Incident: An Illegal Gathering

A group of approximately 40 individuals riding e-bikes and motorcycles proceeded along the bridge’s main deck, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The assembly then turned around and rode through the city’s CBD and a nearby district.

"There was a risk of people to be injured and killed," remarked a senior police official David Driver on the following day.

Police said they did not immediately pursue the group out of concerns for public safety but rather found the assembly at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair near the Botanic Gardens, at which point they broke up.

Penalties Issued for Influencer

On Saturday, police announced they had issued the US social media influencer known as Sur Ronster, 26, with two traffic infringement notices for careless operation (not involving death or prior injury), carrying a fine of $562 and penalty points each, in relation to the bridge ride-out. They added that inquiries were continuing.

The personality is said to have over 3.4 million followers on one platform and more than 1.2m on Instagram.

Influencer's Comments

The content creator gave comments to a local publication recently following the event gained traction on digital platforms, stating he regretted giving "the biking community" a negative image.

"I’ll probably take responsibility. That was among the safest gatherings I’ve ever seen," he told the publication. "I’m coming here as a guest, so I’m going to abide by the rules and standards of Sydney. 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 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 rides the full length of the bridge and turns around, an illegal act. Or we turn around, essentially, before we’re on the bridge. And I made the decision at the time to turn around."

National Debate on Electric Bike Rules

The spate of e-bikes on roads nationwide has sparked growing calls for stricter rules. The federal health minister, Mark Butler, commented that non-compliant electric bikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Kids have done reckless acts on bikes since the invention of the early bicycle [but] the harm that are presenting at our ERs are truly severe," he said. "We’ve got to make sure we prevent these things entering the country [and] officers are given the authority to take strong action, to take them away, to destroy them, to destroy them."

The state reported 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.