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NSW police have levied a penalty against an American social media personality and handed out two driving violation citations for reported reckless operation after a swarm of electric bicycle users converged on the famous Sydney landmark during peak-hour traffic on Tuesday.

The Incident: An Illegal Gathering

A gathering of around 40 individuals operating electric bikes and motorbikes proceeded along the primary roadway of the bridge, where cycling is prohibited. The riders then turned around and rode through the city’s CBD and Haymarket.

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

Law enforcement said they did not chase right away the group due to concerns for public safety but instead located the assembly at a scenic Sydney lookout near the Botanic Gardens, at which point they broke up.

Fines Imposed for Influencer

Later in the week, police announced they had issued the American online personality who goes by Sur Ronster, 26, with two violation tickets for negligent driving (not involving death or prior injury), carrying a penalty of over five hundred dollars and penalty points per notice, in relation to the bridge incident. They added that the investigation is ongoing.

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

Influencer's Comments

The online figure gave comments to a major newspaper recently after the incident gained traction on news sites and social media, stating he was sorry for giving "bike life" a bad reputation.

"I accept the blame. It was among the safest ride-outs I’ve ever seen," he said. "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 ride-out, it was just to greet people under 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 comes back, an illegal act. Or we turn around, essentially, before entering the bridge. And I made the decision at the time to turn around."

Broader Context on E-Bike Regulation

The increase of e-bikes on roads nationwide has prompted increasing demands for regulation. The federal health minister, the minister, recently said that illegal ebikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Kids have done stupid things on bikes ever since the penny-farthing [but] the harm that are coming into our ERs are truly severe," he stated. "We must make sure we stop these things entering the country [and] officers are given the powers to crack down, to confiscate them, to crush them, to destroy them."

NSW reported 226 injuries related to ebikes in the previous year. However, in the initial half of the following year, that figure jumped to 233 injuries plus four deaths.