The city of Salem is planning to relocate two polling places, which serve at least 2,400 voters, before the Nov. 4 elections.

The move relieves two elementary schools of the heavy traffic of voting days, specifically during primary and special elections when school is in session, Salem officials said.

Voters who previously went to West Salem Elementary School, or Precinct D, will vote at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Catholic Church at 314 Turner Road.

Voters who previously went to East Salem Elementary School, or Precinct I, will vote at the Salem Civic Center, which will now be home to three polling stations.

On Monday night, the Salem City Council approved the move, which clears the voting booths from all city schools, ending Election Day congestion.

Dana Oliver, Salem's general registrar, said that putting polls in schools had led to crowded parking lots, creating issues with busing and teacher parking.

"And you have to make room either in the gym or the library" for the polls, she added.

The move is aimed specifically at easing the strain of primary and special elections, because Salem schools are closed for national elections. This year, city schools will hold parent-teacher conferences on Nov. 4, a "nonstudent" day.

Voters in the changing precincts will receive new voter cards and a letter in the mail announcing the move, Oliver said.

She estimated that voter turnout in Salem could reach 85 percent, given the interest in the upcoming elections. In the 2004 election, the city notched a 74 percent turnout, she said.

Salem has 10 polling places and, as of Sept. 2, just shy of 16,000 registered voters.

Virginia residents can register to vote until Oct. 6.