Highest airfares in the region at Bradley International Airport

WINDSOR LOCKS, Conn. (WWLP) - Bradley International Airport has the highest airfares in the region.

For most Western Massachusetts air travelers, Bradley is probably their most convenient airport but some will drive a little further to take advantage of lower airfares at other regional airports.

The average roundtrip ticket rose more than 9% since the same time last year and fares at Bradley are nearly $25 more than the national average, according to the US Bureau of Transportation Statistics.

Belchertown resident Chris Dion chose to fly into Providence even though flying to Bradley would have been much closer. “If you figure in fuel prices from here to there you're not really losing a whole lot of money rather than paying 125 dollars extra for the convenience of flying in closer to home,” said Dion.

Cheaper air fare isn't always the deciding factor of which airport to choose.

Maria Sims said, “It was just convenient, Burlington Connecticut was just up the street so it's easy, easy for us.”

Another thing people factor in is parking and rates are generally cheaper at Bradley than other larger airports.

The airports however don't control the prices of airfare, the airlines do.

John Wallace, Director of Communications for Bradley, says part of the reason is due to who's traveling out of the airport. “We have about a 50/50 breakdown of business vs. leisure travelers as opposed to other regional airports where the number of leisure travelers are higher,” said Walalce.

This is the average price for a roundtrip ticket for airports in the region:

Bradley - $398.03

Kennedy - $394.06

LaGuardia - $367.14

Logan- $365.41

The average price for a roundtrip ticket at Bradley is nearly $400 Kennedy in New York is only a few dollars less while LaGuardia and Logan are both about $30 less.

And that's a price some aren't willing to pay. “I'm flying out at the end of this month out of LaGuardia because I got a good deal from there instead of from here,” said Gloria Evans of Fairfield, Connecticut.

Bradley may have the highest rates in the region but it's 32nd in the nation.