Chicago’s red-light camera program is an example of how government can fail miserably.

Chicago city officials installed their red-light camera program to pick the pockets of local motorists, not enhance traffic safety.

So it seems apropos that a Cook County judge this week gave her approval to a class-action lawsuit covering up to 1.5 million motorists that attacks the manner in which this corrupt program was run.

Those who have been following this story know that the red-light program is synonymous with corruption.

For starters, the winning bidder spent big bucks paying off city officials for the contract. As if that wasn’t bad enough, the cameras were rigged so that yellow lights were too short and more motorists could be issued citations.

On top of those assaults on good government comes the allegation that city officials broke state law by shortening the time that ticketed motorists had to contest violations and pay fines.

As a consequence, untold numbers of motorists not only were required to pay fines but late fees as well.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and his lawyers have tried to downplay the significance of the lawsuit and the potential liability it represents to taxpayers. They assert that violating the 21-day rule to respond doesn’t change the facts that motorists ran a red light. But plaintiffs’ lawyer Jacie Zolna contends that because the program was improperly run the tickets should be dismissed.

Everyone will have to wait and see how the arguments play out. But, once again, people can see another example of the government conspiring against the citizens it’s supposed to serve — strictly for the purpose of generating revenue.

Chicago installed nearly 400 red-light cameras that have generated more than $600 million in fines. Sold as a public safety measure, they were anything but.

A Chicago Tribune investigation revealed that there is little to no reduction in “injury-related right-angle crashes” at many of the intersections where cameras were installed, but there was a 22 percent increase in injuries from rear-end collisions throughout the city.

That adds up to monumental failure on top of monumental failure.

They say Chicago is “the city that works.”

For whom?