This sign appears on Sixth Street just west of Rockledge Road and is intended to help motorists, who may be confused by construction, get to the Kansas Turnpike.

Drivers confused by a half-open, half-closed interchange along the Kansas Turnpike are getting some instructional help from the Kansas Turnpike Authority.

At issue are new directional signs installed this week along Sixth and Iowa streets, near the McDonald Drive exits that lead to the turnpike’s West Lawrence interchange. The interchange’s ramps for westbound traffic have been closed since June 16 as part of a bridge-replacement project.

The new signs have two general suggestions, depending on which way you’re headed out of Lawrence:

¢ If you’re going toward Kansas City, go ahead and get on McDonald Drive and use the West Lawrence toll plaza, which remains open for traffic headed east.

¢ If you’re going to Topeka or other points west, detour either to the Lecompton interchange to the west or the East Lawrence interchange to the east, accessible through North Lawrence.

Most Lawrence residents have long since figured this out and know where to go, said Lisa Callahan, a spokeswoman for the authority. The signs largely are intended for out-of-towners who might not yet know about the project.

An example: A sign posted on Iowa Street directs drivers to go east toward the East Lawrence interchange, instead of west toward the Lecompton interchange, because the route through North Lawrence is considered more convenient, Callahan said.

That route also adds 40 cents in turnpike tolls.

“Believe me, we’re not trying to take anyone out of their way and make any revenue on this,” Callahan said, citing convenience as the main goal.