In this paper, a modified scaled boundary finite element method is proposed to deal with the dynamic analysis of a discontinuous layered half-space. In order to describe the geometry of discontinuous layered half-space exactly, splicing lines, rather than a point, are chosen as the scaling center. Based on the modified scaled boundary transformation of the geometry, the Galerkin's weighted residual technique is applied to obtain the corresponding scaled boundary finite element equations in displacement. Then a modified version of dimensionless frequency is defined, and the governing first-order partial differential equations in dynamic stiffness with respect to the excitation frequency are obtained. The global stiffness is obtained by adding the dynamic stiffness of the interior domain calculated by a standard finite element method, and the dynamic stiffness of far field is calculated by the proposed method. The comparison of two existing solutions for a horizontal layered half-space confirms the accuracy and efficiency of the proposed approach. Finally, the dynamic response of a discontinuous layered half-space due to vertical uniform strip loadings is investigated.