Interstate highways are limited-access (casual side-roads not allowed), highest-priority routes across the country. Interstate highways do not have traffic signals, Stop or Yield signs, or railway level crossings. 1-and-2-digit route numbers are primary routes, especially those ending in 0 or 5. Route numbers ending in an even number are east-west, and route numbers ending in an odd number are north-south. Route numbers are assigned according to geographic position within the country. Interstate 80 crosses the entirety of Nebraska and links California with New Jersey and 9 states in between. Interstate highways are organized by the federal government but owned and constructed by the states in which they reside. Funding for construction and maintenance is shared between the two. Nebraska was the first state to complete its 482 miles (776 km) of Interstate highway, in 1974, after they were commissioned in 1957. The British Motorway is the closest equivalent to the U.S. Interstate highway.

3-digit Interstate highway routes are non-primary routes used to connect Interstates to each other, or connect Interstates to or through or around a metropolitan or downtown area. The leading digit usually indicates the type of end-connections to other Interstates, with an odd number indicating single-connected (a spur) and even for connections at both ends (a loop or link). The last two digits usually identify the primary route connected to. Duplicate non-primary numbers are permitted across the country, but each route number can only appear in each state once. Nebraska has four of these routes: two in Omaha, one in Lincoln, and one in South Sioux City.

Business routes connect an Interstate highway to a nearby metropolitan business district or downtown area. They are not necessarily Interstate-quality highways, and serve as a corridor to guide traffic to and from an Interstate highway. Like the 3-digit Interstate routes, they can be a spur (connected to an Interstate highway at one end) or a loop (connected to the host Interstate at both ends). This distinction is always shown on the route marker sign. Nebraska does not have any of these types of routes.

U.S. Highway routes are moderate-priority inter-state routes. The U.S. Highway system predates the Interstate highway system. Like Interstates, 1-and-2-digit route numbers are primary routes, especially those ending in 0 or 1. Like the Interstates, route numbers ending in an even number are east-west, and route numbers ending in an odd number are north-south. Route numbers are also assigned according to geographic position within the country, but opposite the Interstates to avoid confusion. Important or busy routes (or parts of routes) may be controlled access, with grade separated interchanges, but most are not. US-30 generally parallels I-80 across the state, and was a major trans-continental route known as The Lincoln Highway. US-6 runs from the tip of Cape Cod in Massachusets, through Omaha, all the way to California. Nebraska maintains 3728 miles (6000 km) of U.S. Highways on 18 different routes within its borders. The British ‘A’ routes are the closest equivalent to U.S. Highways.

3-digit U.S. Highway routes are, like the 3-digit Interstate highways, non-primary routes. They may serve as connecting routes, or as completely secondary highway routes. The last two digits may identify the main route connected to, but a non-primary U.S. route may not connect to any primary route at all. Nebraska has eight of these routes, spread across the state.

National Forest Highways are designated and overseen by the National Forest Service, and exist to ensure easy public access to official forests and related points of interest. Like regular U.S. Highways, they are organized at the national level but are maintained and paid for by the state in which they reside. The route numbering may be arbitrary, based on a grid, or dervied from a State or U.S. Highway route. Nebraska does not have any Forest Highways to my knowledge.

Nebraska State Highway routes are general-priority routes. The route designations exist only within the state of Nebraska. State routes terminate at the state line, and will get a different route designation and/or priority if continuing within the adjoining state. Nebraska's state highways comprise approximately 5732 miles (9224 km) of roadway, with approximately 39 miles (63 km) surfaced with gravel versus concrete. State highways have primary routes and secondary routes. Primary route numbers may be 1, 2, or 3 digits. Older or more-important routes tend to be 1 or 2 digit routes, but 3-digit routes are not secondary. Each U.S. state may designate its own route marker design in lieu of using the default white circle. Nebraska's primary route marker design features an isosceles trapezoid (British English: trapezium) shield with oxen pulling a covered wagon over a hill at the base. The name of the state appears across the top of the shield. The British ‘B’ (and probably some ‘C’) routes are the closest equivalent to Nebraska State Highways.

Nebraska State Highway secondary routes are lesser-priority routes which only exist to connect State Highways together, or to connect a town or village to a State Highway. Secondary route numbers are designated by letter (presumably in order of institution) following the alphabetical county number of origin. Secondary routes can be Links or Spurs. Links connect two proximate State Highways together. Spurs connect a State Highway to a nearby town, village, or point of interest not otherwise directly served by a State (or better) Highway. Nebraska is the only state to employ a secondary highway numbering system in this manner, though a few others do have secondary Spur/Link/Alternate/Business routes. Nebraska Spur 89a is in my home county, and is only 425 feet (130 m) long—the shortest secondary road in the state.

Recreation routes are especially-designated roads in, to, or through a recreational or tourist point of interest. They are considered State Highways, and are maintained by the state, but are usually not identified as such or even signed. (I've never seen one of these route signs.) As such, these might be considered tertiary routes, but this is not official. Recreation roads might even be considered the state equivalent of National Forest roads. The route numbering system is identical to the Nebraska secondary route system, but the route sign shield includes the text “Recreation Road” and a silhouette of a pine tree.

Many states have a system of county roads which are organized much like lesser State highways, with formal route designations and route marker signage. Such roads are designated, built, maintained, and paid for by the owning county instead of the state. Nebraska does not have county highways in this manner.

County roads in Nebraska are designated and signed like non-municipal streets (see below). They are the lowest-priority through roads. There is no standardized scheme, and each county is free to organize, build, designate, and sign its County roads as it sees fit. Some counties may prefer official names for County roads over numbers. Over the past few decades, counties have strived to provide consistent and quality labeling and signage in their jurisdictions to aid in emergency response and driver navigation. Important or often-used County roads may be treated to a concrete or asphalt surface, but most county roads in Nebraska—about 82%—are gravel or dirt surfaced. Some counties also organize and name private lanes and residential driveways to aid in emergency response. British ‘C’ and ‘D’ routes are the closest equivalent to County roads and highways.

Some states, such as Nebraska, have a special designation of road called a “Minimum Maintenance Road.” These are almost-always County-level roads. They are also usually dirt-surfaced, and only one lane. They do not receive any more than the most basic amount of money and maintenance to keep them open, and are not plowed for snow or are graded-flat regularly. Nebraska law states that such roads cannot be the only road to an occupied residence, a route used by school buses, a route used to deliver U.S. Postal mail, or a route regularly used by the general public. All such roads are not usually numbered or signed differently than other roads, but a Minimum Maintenance Road warning sign must be present at each ingress point from a better public roadway.

“Street” is a common, generic term for a public municipal road. Streets are generally proximate or within the municipality which names and maintains them. When labeled, they may be numbered or named as: Street (St), Avenue (Ave), Way, Boulevard (Blvd), Parkway (Pkwy), Freeway (Fwy), Expressway (Expwy), Road (Rd), Corso, Plaza (Plz), Lane (Ln), Drive (Dr), Alley (Aly), Terrace (Ter), Place (Pl), Court (Ct), Circle (Cir), Loop (Lp), Path, Trail (Tr), and so on. Many of these terms can have casual or formal definitions, but they are often not followed. Each municipality will have its own street labeling and organization scheme, such as Avenues running east-west and Streets running north-south. Unlike numbered route markers, municipal roads are signed with “street signs” presented in-line to the street's orientation. The signs at left might be encountered were you to travel along a street and come to (West) Lincoln Avenue or Maple Street. The Maple Street sign reminds you that Maple Street is 29 blocks north of a central or principal core street. That tells you that addreses for the street you're currently on, north of Maple Street, will start at 2901.