They often are, and there is some (at least in some places in the US) cultural inertia to intervene and get someone to voluntarily surrender their driving privilege (either formally by giving up their license in favor of a State ID or informally by giving up their vehicles) before the state does it for you.

I've been around for those conversations with grandparents on a few occasions now, and many people I know have too.

I don't think its an anomaly, but it is anecdotal