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NSW authorities have issued a fine against an US-based online influencer and served two traffic infringement notices for reported negligent driving after a swarm of electric bicycle users gathered on the Sydney Harbour Bridge during peak-hour traffic on a weekday.

The Event: A Prohibited Ride

A gathering of approximately 40 people riding electric bikes and motorbikes travelled along the bridge’s main deck, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The assembly then turned around and traveled through the downtown area and Haymarket.

"There was potential for serious injury or fatalities," stated NSW police assistant commissioner David Driver on Wednesday.

Law enforcement indicated they did not immediately pursue the riders due to safety concerns but rather found the group at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair near the city gardens, at which point they broke up.

Penalties Issued for Influencer

On Saturday, authorities stated they had issued the American online personality known as Sur Ronster, 26, with two violation tickets for negligent driving (not involving death or prior injury), with a penalty of $562 and three demerit points each, in relation to the bridge ride-out. They added that the investigation is ongoing.

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

Creator's Response

The online figure gave comments to a major newspaper recently after the incident spread rapidly on news sites and social media, stating he was sorry for giving "bike life" a negative image.

"I’ll probably take responsibility. It was one of the safest ride-outs I’ve ever seen," he told the publication. "I’m coming here as a guest, so I’m going to abide by 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 say hi near 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, an illegal act. Or we reverse, basically, before entering the bridge. I chose at the time to go back."

Broader Context on E-Bike Regulation

The spate of e-bikes on roads nationwide has sparked growing calls for regulation. The federal health minister, the minister, commented that illegal ebikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Kids have done stupid things on bikes since the invention of the early bicycle [but] the injuries that are coming into our ERs are truly severe," he said. "We must make sure we stop these things coming into the country [and] police are given the powers to take strong action, to confiscate them, to crush them, to dispose of them."

The state recorded over two hundred injuries associated with electric bikes in the previous year. However, in the first seven months of the following year, that number surged to two hundred thirty-three injuries plus four deaths.