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New South Wales authorities have issued a fine against an US-based online influencer and handed out two driving violation citations for alleged negligent driving following a large group of e-bike riders gathered on the Sydney Harbour Bridge during peak-hour traffic on Tuesday.

The Incident: An Illegal Gathering

A gathering of approximately 40 individuals operating electric bikes and motorbikes travelled along the bridge’s main deck, where cycling is prohibited. The assembly then turned around and rode through the downtown area and a nearby district.

"This had a risk of serious injury or fatalities," remarked NSW police assistant commissioner David Driver on the following day.

Law enforcement indicated they did not immediately pursue the group out of safety concerns but instead located the group at a scenic Sydney lookout near the Botanic Gardens, where they dispersed.

Penalties Issued for Influencer

Later in the week, authorities stated they had served the American online personality who goes by the influencer, twenty-six, with two traffic infringement notices for negligent driving (not involving death or prior injury), carrying a penalty of $562 and three demerit points per notice, connected to the bridge incident. Officials noted that the investigation is ongoing.

The influencer is said to have more than 3.4 million subscribers on YouTube and more than 1.2 million on the social media app.

Influencer's Comments

The content creator spoke with a major newspaper this week after the incident spread rapidly on digital platforms, saying he regretted giving "bike life" a negative image.

"I accept the blame. It was one of the safest ride-outs I’ve ever seen," he said. "I’m coming here as a guest, and I intend to come here respecting the rules and standards of Sydney. So when I decided to do a meet and greet it did not involve a group ride, it was just to say hi under the bridge."

"I did not know the area well, it was my fault we ended up on the bridge and I had a decision to make: either the group rides the full length of the bridge and turns around, an illegal act. Or we reverse, basically, before we’re on the bridge. I chose at the time to turn around."

National Debate on E-Bike Regulation

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

"Young people have engaged in stupid things on bikes since the invention of the early bicycle [but] the injuries that are coming into our ERs are truly severe," he stated. "We’ve got to make sure we stop these things entering the country [and] officers are granted the powers to take strong action, to take them away, to destroy them, to destroy them."

NSW recorded 226 injuries related to ebikes in the previous year. However, in the first seven months of the following year, that figure jumped to two hundred thirty-three injuries plus four fatalities.