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NSW authorities have issued a fine against an US-based online influencer and handed out two driving violation citations for reported reckless operation following a large group of e-bike riders converged on the famous Sydney landmark during the busy commute on a weekday.

The Event: An Illegal Gathering

A group of around 40 individuals riding electric bikes and motorbikes travelled along the bridge’s main deck, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The riders subsequently reversed direction and rode through the downtown area and Haymarket.

"There was a risk of serious injury or fatalities," remarked a senior police official David Driver on Wednesday.

Law enforcement said they did not immediately pursue the riders due to safety concerns but instead located the group at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair near the Botanic Gardens, where they dispersed.

Fines Imposed for Content Creator

Later in the week, authorities announced they had served the American online personality who goes by Sur Ronster, twenty-six, with two traffic infringement notices for careless operation (with no death or previous bodily harm), carrying a penalty of over five hundred dollars and penalty points each, in relation to the bridge incident. Officials noted that inquiries were continuing.

The influencer reportedly has over 3.4 million followers on one platform and over 1.2m on Instagram.

Influencer's Comments

The content creator gave comments to a major newspaper this week following the event spread rapidly on digital platforms, stating he was sorry for giving "the biking community" a bad reputation.

"I’ll probably take responsibility. That was among the safest ride-outs I’ve ever seen," he told the publication. "I am a visitor here, so I’m going to abide by the laws and norms of Sydney. When I decided to do a meet and greet it did not involve a group ride, it was just to say hi under the bridge."

"I did not know the area well, it was my fault we found ourselves on the bridge and I had two choices: whether 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. And I made the decision at the time to go back."

National Debate on Electric Bike Rules

The spate of e-bikes on roads nationwide has sparked increasing demands for stricter rules. A senior government official, Mark Butler, commented that illegal ebikes were a "total menace on the road."

"Young people have engaged in stupid things on bikes since the invention of the penny-farthing [but] the harm that are coming into our hospital emergency departments are absolutely devastating," the minister stated. "We’ve got to make sure we stop these things coming into the country [and] police are granted the authority to take strong action, to confiscate them, to destroy them, to destroy them."

The state reported 226 injuries associated with electric bikes in the previous year. But, in the first seven months of 2025, that number jumped to two hundred thirty-three injuries plus four deaths.