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NSW police have issued a fine against an American social media personality and handed out two traffic infringement notices for alleged negligent driving after a swarm of electric bicycle users converged on the famous Sydney landmark during peak-hour traffic on a weekday.

The Incident: An Illegal Gathering

A group of approximately 40 people riding e-bikes and motorcycles proceeded along the primary roadway of the bridge, an area where bicycle riding is banned. The riders subsequently reversed direction and traveled through the city’s CBD and Haymarket.

"There was potential for serious injury or fatalities," remarked a senior police official David Driver on Wednesday.

Police indicated they did not chase right away the riders due to concerns for public safety but instead located the assembly at Mrs Macquarie’s Chair near the city gardens, at which point they broke up.

Penalties Issued for Influencer

Later in the week, authorities stated they had issued the American online personality who goes by the influencer, 26, with two violation tickets for negligent driving (with no death or previous bodily harm), carrying a penalty of over five hundred dollars and three demerit points per notice, in relation to the bridge ride-out. Officials noted that the investigation is ongoing.

The personality is said to have more than 3.4 million followers on YouTube and over 1.2m on the social media app.

Influencer's Comments

The content creator spoke with a local publication this week after the incident gained traction on digital platforms, 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 told the publication. "I am a visitor here, so I’m going to abide by the rules and standards of Sydney. So 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, which is a crime. Or we reverse, 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 spate of e-bikes on streets across the country has sparked growing calls for regulation. The federal health minister, the minister, commented that illegal ebikes were a "complete hazard on the road."

"Young people have engaged in stupid things on bikes ever since the penny-farthing [but] the harm that are presenting at our ERs are absolutely devastating," the minister said. "We’ve got to ensure we prevent these things entering the country [and] officers are granted the authority to crack down, to confiscate them, to crush them, to dispose of them."

The state recorded 226 injuries related to electric bikes in the previous year. But, in the initial half of the following year, that figure surged to two hundred thirty-three injuries plus four fatalities.