Police are reminding Canberrans how to drive on the territory's slippery roads as wet weather continues to impair driving.
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The advice comes after an "horrific 48 hours" on Canberra's roads amid "horrendous weather conditions".
As of 1pm Thursday, there had been 43 crashes in the territory since rain started falling on Monday. A man died in hospital after his car crashed into a tree in Farrer early Thursday morning, less than 24 hours after a 31-year-old man died in a crash on Erindale Drive on Wednesday afternoon.
Police said taking your eyes off the road for just three seconds to check a text message or talk to backseat passengers while driving at 60km/h was the equivalent of driving blindfolded for 50 metres, or the length of more than two tennis courts. Combined with slippery roads, a serious crash could "happen in a split second".
Acting officer in charge of Traffic Operations, acting station Sergeant Susan Smith said driver distraction was complicated when wet weather came into play.
"When you've got everything else going on around you such as rain, a storm, you certainly don't want any other distractions such as mobile phones," she said.
"These things happen in a split second. It's being aware, being really conscious of what's going on around you."
Sergeant Smith said it was critical Canberrans slowed down and drove to the conditions, after an "horrific 48 hours on our roads".
"Even though the sign may say 60, if it's safer to drive at 40[km/h] drive at 40, especially if the road traffic's heavy at peak hour times," she said.
"On the wet road surface you will slip, so you can't stop as quickly.
"Obviously we've had some pretty horrendous weather conditions over the last two days - that rain is going to be on our roads for some time."
Sergeant Smith said drivers should stay three seconds behind the car in front of them so they could break safely.
"You are looking at 50 or 60 metres between the vehicles," she said.
"Again, if the road conditions are poor, keep the distance greater. Do give yourself that buffer."
Impaired visibility from rain and fog was another reason to slow down, turn lights on and concentrate.
"If you've got rain you can't see as well as you can if it's a clear summer day. People have to be mindful of that," Sergeant Smith said.
She said drivers should ensure they were well rested before getting behind the wheel and urged all passengers to wear a seatbelt.
How fast are you going?
- A driver travelling at 40km/h will travel 33 metres in three seconds - more than the length of a basketball court.
- A driver travelling at 60km/h will travel 50 metres in three seconds - more than two tennis courts.
- A driver travelling at 80km/h will travel 66 metres in three seconds - more than the length of two netball courts.
- A driver travelling at 100km/h will travel 83 metres in three seconds - that's almost three basketball courts.
