Pressure is growing for a revamp of e-bike rules across the country following a mass joy ride over the Sydney Harbour Bridge and a surge in the number of crashes causing death and injury.

Footage of about 40 young e-bike riders and motorcyclists doing wheelies and riding dangerously during the bridge ride has been widely shared, with the behaviour described as “incredibly irresponsible, stupid and downright dangerous” by NSW Police Traffic and Highway Patrol Commander David Driver.

While it has prompted NSW politicians and police to pledge a crackdown on electric bikes, the joy ride is just the latest in a string of incidents nationwide that have sparked calls for new e-bike rules.

Separate e-bike accidents just days apart claimed two lives in Queensland last October: An eight-year-old died after a head-on collision between two e-bikes on the Sunshine Coast, and a 17-year-old rider was involved in a fatal crash with a car on the Gold Coast.

Other fatalities have included an e-bike rider in his 30s who died after colliding with a rubbish truck in Sydney in December (the fourth e-bike-related death in NSW in 2025), a 17-year-old who was the passenger on an e-bike involved in a collision on the Gold Coast in September, and a 15-year killed when he lost control of his e-bike and hit a pole in Tasmania on New Year’s Eve.

An increase in the popularity of the bikes has also been matched by a rise in the number of injuries, especially among young people.

Sydney Children’s Hospital Network reported that almost 100 children were hurt while riding e-bikes in 2025 (compared with 60 the previous year), while Queensland Health has said the number of e-bike and e-scooter injuries in that state more than doubled in the past four years.

“Education and community appeals alone have proven insufficient. It is time to take a strong stance – no more Mr Nice Guy,” Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate wrote to Queensland Premier David Crisafulli in November, expressing concern about the “escalating dangerous behaviour” of young e-bike riders.

Tate was urging the state government to fast-track e-bike laws, rather than waiting for the results of a parliamentary inquiry due next month.

He and many others concerned about e-bike safety want all e-bikes to be registered, and for riders to be licensed.

There are also calls in several states for increased fines for those riding dangerously, and for the seizure of the bikes of repeat offenders.

In addition, some experts believe there should be age limits for e-bike riders.

An e-bike rider died after he slammed into a rubbish truck in Sydney in December.

In NSW, where about 600,000 households are said to own an e-bike, the government had already announced plans to reduce the maximum power output of the bikes from 500 watts to 250 watts before the Sydney Harbour Bridge joyride.

“We’re seeing too many powerful, modified devices that put riders and everyone around them at risk,” Minister for Roads and Regional Transport Jenny Aitchison said in December.

“These changes are about preventing serious injuries before they happen.”

A change in the maximum power output of e-bikes to 250 watts will bring NSW in line with other states and territories, most of which also have rules stating that the motor assist on such bikes must cut out at 25km/h.

Other rules regarding e-bikes are generally consistent across the country, including the fact that riders don’t need a driver’s licence or compulsory third-party insurance, the bikes don’t have to be registered, and riders must obey the same road rules as regular pedal-powered bikes.

Unlike electric scooters, most states have no age limit for e-bike riders. The exception is Western Australia, where riders must be at least 16.

Susan Teerds, from Kidsafe, told the ABC in November that children under 16 generally did not have the cognitive ability to assess risk when riding electric bikes, scooters or skateboards.

“Generally speaking, younger children do not understand that vehicle, or that truck, is going too fast to stop in time and [they could] slip in front of them very quickly,” she said.

“Children should not be in this situation.”

University of Melbourne researcher Milad Haghani agrees with Teerds, pointing out that a minimum age limit for e-bike use – usually 16 – is common in some countries.

Writing in The Conversation, Haghani said overseas studies had shown e-bike riders faced a higher risk of fatal accidents than pedal cyclists.

In addition, young e-bike riders were twice as likely to suffer traumatic brain injuries as those on regular bikes.

“In Australia, many of the e-bikes children ride are technically illegal or modified,” Haghani said. “Conversion kits sold online can remove speed limiters, turning a standard bike into one capable of highway speeds.”

He concluded there was already enough international evidence to guide policy in Australia: “We don’t need to wait for local tragedies to confirm what’s been shown elsewhere – that e-bikes pose distinct risks to children.”

According to experts, some modified e-bikes can reach speeds of more than 60km/h.

The federal government announced at the end of last year that it was tightening import standards to ensure high-powered and high-speed bikes that functioned more like motorbikes could not be imported as e-bikes. The rules align with European standards, which include an anti-tampering clause to stop the bikes being modified.

“We will continue to work with states and territories to ensure consistency as we develop a regulatory framework that ensures safe and consistent supply and use of these devices in Australia,” federal transport minister Catherine King said at the time.

After last week’s Sydney Harbour Bridge incident, NRMA spokesman Peter Khoury added his voice to calls for a registration scheme, and for police to be able to confiscate bikes used illegally.

He urged a crackdown on illegal e-bikes on public roads.

“Parents have gotta stop buying kids these bikes, and we need to find ways to ensure they cannot be tampered with,” Khoury said.