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NSW police have levied a penalty against an American social media personality and served two driving violation citations for alleged reckless operation after a large group of e-bike riders gathered on the Sydney Harbour Bridge during peak-hour traffic on Tuesday.

The Event: A Prohibited Ride

A gathering of approximately 40 people operating e-bikes and motorcycles proceeded along the bridge’s main deck, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The riders subsequently reversed direction and rode through the city’s CBD and a nearby district.

"This had a risk of people to be injured and killed," stated a senior police official David Driver on the following day.

Law enforcement indicated they did not chase right away the riders due to concerns for public safety but instead located the assembly at a scenic Sydney lookout near the city gardens, where they dispersed.

Penalties Issued for Content Creator

Later in the week, police stated they had served the American online personality known as the influencer, 26, with two traffic infringement notices for careless operation (not involving death or prior injury), with a penalty of over five hundred dollars and three demerit points each, in relation to the bridge incident. Officials noted that the investigation is ongoing.

The influencer reportedly has over 3.4m followers on one platform and over 1.2 million on the social media app.

Creator's Response

The online figure spoke with a local publication this week after the incident spread rapidly on news sites and social media, stating he was sorry for giving "the biking community" a negative image.

"I accept the blame. That was one of the safest ride-outs I’ve ever seen," he said. "I’m coming here as a guest, and I intend to abide by the laws and norms of the city. So when I decided to do a public meeting it did not involve a group ride, it was just to say hi under the bridge."

"I did not know the area well, I am to blame we ended up on the bridge and I had a decision to make: whether the group rides the full length of the bridge and comes back, an illegal act. 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 E-Bike Regulation

The increase of e-bikes on streets across the country has sparked growing calls for regulation. The federal health minister, Mark Butler, commented that non-compliant electric bikes were a "total menace on the road."

"Kids have done stupid things on bikes ever since the penny-farthing [but] the injuries that are presenting at our hospital emergency departments are truly severe," the minister stated. "We must ensure we prevent these things entering the country [and] police are given the authority to take strong action, to take them away, to crush them, to dispose of them."

NSW reported over two hundred injuries associated with electric bikes in the previous year. However, in the first seven months of the following year, that number jumped to 233 injuries plus four deaths.