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New South Wales police have levied a penalty against an US-based online influencer and handed out two driving violation citations for alleged reckless operation after a swarm of e-bike riders gathered on the Sydney Harbour Bridge during peak-hour traffic on a weekday.

The Incident: An Illegal Gathering

A group of approximately 40 people operating electric bikes and motorbikes travelled along the bridge’s main deck, where cycling is prohibited. The riders then turned around 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.

Police indicated they did not chase right away the riders out of concerns for public safety but instead located the group at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair near the city gardens, where they dispersed.

Fines Imposed for Influencer

Later in the week, police stated they had issued the American online personality who goes by the influencer, twenty-six, with two violation tickets for negligent driving (with no death or previous bodily harm), with a fine of $562 and penalty points each, in relation to the bridge ride-out. Officials noted that inquiries were continuing.

The personality reportedly has over 3.4m subscribers on YouTube and over 1.2m on Instagram.

Creator's Response

The content creator gave comments to a major newspaper this week following the event gained traction on news sites and social media, stating he regretted giving "the biking community" a negative image.

"I accept the blame. It was among the safest gatherings I’ve ever seen," he said. "I’m coming here as a guest, and I intend to come here respecting the rules and standards of the city. So when I decided to do a meet and greet it did not involve a group ride, it was just to say hi near the bridge."

"I did not know the area well, I am to blame we found ourselves 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 entering the bridge. I chose at the time to go back."

Broader Context on Electric Bike Rules

The spate of e-bikes on streets across the country has prompted increasing demands for regulation. A senior government official, Mark Butler, recently said that illegal ebikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Kids have done reckless acts on bikes since the invention of the penny-farthing [but] the harm that are presenting at our ERs are truly severe," the minister stated. "We’ve got to make sure we stop these things coming into the country [and] officers are given the authority to take strong action, to confiscate them, to crush them, to destroy them."

The state reported 226 injuries related to electric bikes in 2024. But, in the initial half of 2025, that number jumped to two hundred thirty-three injuries plus four fatalities.