🔗 Share this article

NSW police have levied a penalty against an US-based online influencer and served two traffic infringement notices for reported reckless operation after a swarm of e-bike riders converged on the famous Sydney landmark during the busy commute on a weekday.

The Event: A Prohibited Ride

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

"This had a risk of people to be injured and killed," remarked a senior police official the officer on Wednesday.

Police indicated they did not immediately pursue the riders due to concerns for public safety but rather found the assembly at a scenic Sydney lookout near the city gardens, where they dispersed.

Fines Imposed for Influencer

Later in the week, authorities stated they had served the US social media influencer who goes by Sur Ronster, twenty-six, with two traffic infringement notices for negligent driving (with no death or previous bodily harm), with a fine of over five hundred dollars and three demerit points each, connected to the bridge ride-out. They added that the investigation is ongoing.

The personality is said to have over 3.4m subscribers on YouTube and more than 1.2 million on Instagram.

Influencer's Comments

The online figure gave comments to a major newspaper this week after the incident gained traction on digital platforms, saying he regretted giving "bike life" a bad reputation.

"I’ll probably take responsibility. It was among the safest ride-outs I’ve ever seen," he told the publication. "I’m coming here as a guest, and I intend to come here respecting the laws and norms of the city. When I decided to do a public meeting it was not meant to include a group ride, 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 two choices: either the group rides the full length of the bridge and turns around, which is a crime. Or we turn around, essentially, before we’re on the bridge. I chose at the time to turn around."

Broader Context on Electric Bike Rules

The increase of electric bicycles on streets across the country has sparked increasing demands for stricter rules. The federal health minister, Mark Butler, recently said that non-compliant electric bikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Young people have engaged in reckless acts on bikes ever since the early bicycle [but] the injuries that are presenting at our hospital emergency departments are absolutely devastating," he said. "We’ve got to ensure we stop these things entering the country [and] officers are granted the powers to take strong action, to confiscate them, to destroy them, to destroy them."

The state recorded over two hundred injuries related to electric bikes in the previous year. However, in the initial half of 2025, that number jumped to 233 injuries plus four deaths.