In the early 20th century, soon after the development of the automobile, travelers, city officials, and others planned a network of paved overland routes before the interstate highway system existed. Road associations supplied vision and promotion, while states and municipalities provided capital, and although early results were piecemeal and inconsistent, the Good Roads Movement, the National Highway Association, and similar organizations continued working to improve routes nationally. In 1914, the Automobile Club of Savannah, Georgia, proposed an all-seasons route from Savannah to Los Angeles, and interested towns and parties formed the Dixie Overland Highway Association, with offices in Columbus, Georgia. The route passed through 75 U.S. counties, including Kaufman, was partially opened by the 1920s, and later had its western terminus changed to San Diego. Along the route, travelers faced major obstacles, including the Forney Gap, where the road entered Forney east of Mustang Creek, crossed through town past service stations and other businesses serving travelers, and then, on the west side of town as the land dropped toward the East Fork of the Trinity River floodplain, the pavement ended at a slippery, muddy hill and a roadway often flooded. Despite such obstacles, the association's president traveled the length of the highway in a publicity stunt in October 1926, going from San Diego to Savannah in just over 71 hours. Two months later, much of the highway became U.S. Highway 80, and its role as a primary interstate route was later superseded by Interstate 20.