It's been about twelve years since I moved to North Carolina and back then, the drive to IRM was pastoral, and so to hear that the area you described became simply more suburban sprawl is disheartening, but inevitable, as it is pretty much the same situation where I currently live, south of Charlotte NC. I think the flavor of IRM being in a remaining rural location really illustrates the long ago era of rural public transportation represented by the E&B. I know I had that sense of any ride I took through that countryside on IRM was nearly identical to what an E&B rider must have experienced, or the Illinois Terminal or many others. Remote towns that were no bigger than a small subdivision. I often though the a-building Main Street they are developing would have been perhaps better suited historically to be placed at the end of the current line to give that feeling of a journey through rural farms and fields to a small town, running the tracks through the "towns street" to illustrate that aspect of the interurban engineering of that era. England has some great examples of that sort of context. I know of none here in the U.S. I have ridden many a museum's trackage that ends in the middle of nowhere, grinds to a halt and reverses back, rather than giving the accurate historical experience of going from point A to B, which one would think would be more of a draw.
I have always been surprised perhaps naive, but nonetheless dumbfounded why this aspect of recreating the experience has been neglected.

Branford (Connecticut) Electric Rwy. Ass'n. - Shore Line Trolley Museum is within a 5 minute walk of local bus lines at both ends of its line, and about a 10 minute walk from more frequent service some of the day. Transfer to a 2nd bus route is necessary to get to the intercity train station.
Electric City Trolley Museum & Station in Scranton, Pennsylvania is across the tracks from the intercity bus station, where some local transit buses also stop, although it's a slightly longer walk through the underpass or over the pedestrian bridge.

Getting back to the original question, METRA to Woodstock seems to be best. IRM's Executive Director Nick Kallas told me he would find a way to get you to IRM from Woodstock if you would like. Contact him at nkallas@irm.org once you know your plans if you are interested.

For your information:
2050 is a N&W Y3a class 2-8-8-2.
lois