Minor correction: You can right-click anywhere in the tab bar to bring up the context menu with the "New Tab" option, not just in empty space. For me, there seldom is empty space in the tab bar. But an even faster way to create a new tab is to use the keyboard shortcut Control-T (Command-T on Mac).

It's also far more reliable than mouse gestures, which often get trapped by applets; applets seldom trap all keyboard input. I've given up on mouse gestures, which half the time don't work as advertised. A "shortcut" shouldn't waste your time.