There was no horsing around for some Melbourne drivers as mounted police were spotted pulling cars over and checking licences at Southbank.

Officers on horseback conducted the random checks along Sturt Street on Thursday night.

The mounted branch stables are located just around the corner.

One driver pulled over by police, John Mangan, said it was a strange thing to see.

The mounted police stables are located close to Sturt St. ( ABC News )

"I was just driving along minding my own business and a number of police horses were on the road in front of me," he said.

"They stopped me and asked to give them some details.

"I wasn't sure what was going on, I thought maybe they were crossing the road and were needing me to stop.

"That's without precedence, I've never seen that before. A very unusual experience, but they seemed to be very efficient."

A spokeswoman from Victoria Police told the ABC it was routine practice for the mounted branch and they often conducted breath tests during their shifts.

On its website, Victoria Police said the mounted branch provided "a state-wide response in support of operational police at incidents of public order management, planned and targeted patrols, land searches and community engagement events within and across Victorian communities".