Commercial map has changed
Merchants in Aitoloacarnania have also noticed customers shifting to Patras. Nafpaktos Commercial Association President Lambros Tiligadas told Kathimerini that consumers in his area shop in Patras, using their own cars or public transport to get there. They buy from shops, department stores and local markets where they get everything from food to clothes. Though Aitoloacarnania seems to be losing shoppers, at least it is balancing its losses with a growing number of visitors and pleasure-trippers. Immediately after the bridge opened last August, local seaside areas became busier. Aitoloacarnania has many beautiful locations that attract people from Achaia and other prefectures in Western Greece who hesitated to visit them until recently, even though they were so close, for fear of the long lines of cars waiting to cross by ferry, especially on Sundays.
