Canal culture integration in canal-side urban squares: Comparative evidence from Qinzhou, China
Canal-side public spaces are increasingly expected to translate canal heritage and contemporary canal development into everyday urban experience. This study investigates the effectiveness of canal culture integration in urban squares along the Pinglu Canal corridor in Qinzhou, Guangxi, China, and examines how such spaces can carry canal-related cultural expression into everyday public life within the context of canal-side public space development. Based on a preliminary survey of seven canal-side squares in the urban area of Qinzhou, Yongfu Square and Tingyin Square were selected as representative cases for comparative analysis. Both squares provide leisure and public service functions, but they differ substantially in spatial scale, environmental quality, and modes of cultural display. The study combined field observation with a structured questionnaire survey. A total of 127 valid responses were analyzed through descriptive statistics and between-group tests across four dimensions: cultural identity, perceived value, experience quality, and public use. The results indicate that public recognition of canal-themed cultural content remains generally weak in both squares, suggesting that the existing cultural symbols have not yet achieved sufficient readability in everyday use. At the same time, the two cases showed differences in selected dimensions. Yongfu Square showed stronger performance in cultural value, experience-quality indicators, and willingness to participate. These findings suggest that canal culture integration in daily-use public spaces requires attention to cultural readability, spatial quality, and everyday usability, and they provide case-based empirical support for the renewal of comparable canal-side public spaces in Qinzhou.
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