A right to pass, and repass over a particular route on the land.

One can thus pass along the right of way, how you do so depends on the nature of the given right, on some you can only ride a bike, but on others you can use any means of passage you feel like, be it your feet, a bike, a horse, or a motor vehicle.
Crudely speaking there are four main classes:
Footpath - only usable by the public on foot, no bikes, horses or motorized things allowed.
Bridleway - usable on foot, bike or horse back.
Road, Used as Public Path - a bit of an anathema these, as they carry 'at least' footpath rights, probably bridleway, and most vehicular.  This was a mess invented by Parliament, and the subject of much debate ever since!
Byeway Open to All Traffic - the highest status of Right of Way.  Open to ALL traffic, and the subject of much misunderstanding among certain groups....

Then there are 'ucr', or 'uccr', these are unclassified roads, which may, or may not be Rights of Way, and if Rights of Way, may, or may not, have vehicular rights.

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Any member of the public may use a Right of Way.

There are limitations to be aware of, notably that a Right may be suspended for either a defined, or un-defined period, for example during open cast coal working.

Generally one can use a Right of Way, if one making a valid journey, which may be to go and see your Aunt Maud's grave, or to admire the scenery along the way.

Remember, do not cause damage to the Way, or the flora and fauna that is legally along it.  One may remove something that prevents your passage.  This is called 'abating'.  Do so with care, because if what you consider to be an obstruction is actually a limitation then you are in trouble...

Any class of user up to that permitted by the class permitted by the Way's classification may use a Right of Way, but if you are a bike rider on a Bridleway, then you have to give way to all other legitimate users.

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This is the generic name for Vehicular Rights of Way.

These are the ancient roads of our land.  Some have been lost in antiquity, and other some would see lost.
They are out grandchildren's heritage, we must do our utmost to ensure that these roads are open to use by all the public, as they once were.
This was once a busy route between local farms, a village or two, and a mill.  Today it is a quite Bridleway, ahead, and Byeway, behind.  At this point a 'UCR' joins, and leads out onto the tarred road.  Due to a quirk in the law, the bridleway actually carries vehicular rights, just to add to the confusion.  Follow this link for a description of this lane complex.
 

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A good starting point is the Ordinance Survey 'Land Ranger'(c) series of maps.
These show with varying degrees of accuracy the majority of Rights of Way in an area.  You must be aware that due to the lead time it takes to get the data from many councils tot eh Ordinance Survey, and then onto the actual map there may be errors, sorry, there are errors in these maps.
Once you've had a look at the Land Ranger map for the area you are interested in, take a trip to the local council office and ask to speak to the 'Rights of Way Officer', or, if that gets a blank stare try the 'Footpaths Officer'.  Explain that you want to see the 'Definitive Map, and Statement' (or the 'Footpaths Map').  This is real starting point for the current status of a Right of Way.
With any luck this person will be a pleasant soul, over worked, under paid and glad to be of assistance, but others are less desirable....  If you are working one your home turff, then it is well worth cultivating a good working relationship with this person, they can save you a lot of time in the long run.  Listen carefully to what they say, one I know well said in passing "Did you know that this didn't remove vehicular rights from this bridleway, and do you take sugar in your coffee?"  I didn't and I do...

If, like me, research is your thing, then get into the local records office.  This is a real treasury.  In my experience the staff are helpful, its a pleasant change for someone to ask to see the maps for Bloggston over the last 300 years as opposed to the never ending search for lost relatives.  I well remember having three archivists looking at one very nicely drawn 18th centruy map which they'd never seen before.  I could write pages about what to look for on these old maps, but put simply we are looking to see if the rod was owned by someone other than the Parish, and if there were any limitations to its use.

Finally the Highways Department.  Most of their time is spent dealing with the tarred road network.  Here you are looking to see the 'List of Streets' - roads that are maintainable at public expense.  The list may in many forms, ranging from a simple  list, to a very nice set of maps and supporting documents.  Here again take time to cultivate contacts.  One contact I have was very 'anti' vehicular use of green lanes, but with a lot of hard work, being polite, but forceful he has become 'neutral'; or may be even slightly pro.

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Other Rights of Way web sites I know about
 

Mike Cattel (Cheshire)
Mark Smith (also in Staffordshire)
Dave Tilbury (Hampshire)
Andy Bush (AWDC)

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