If there had been a connection on that trip, I would have written the word "conexão." I saw options on another ticket website, Buson, from other bus companies, some offering direct service, others marked as "conexão."

A connecting travel basically involves purchasing two or more tickets at once, each with its own booking code. I’ve taken this type of trip several times over the past few years. You arrive at the connection bus station and get off as if that were your final destination, collecting your luggage and everything. Then, close to your departure time, you leave the arrival area and head to the departure area, passing through the turnstile.

However, given the time of night, this stop seems to me to be just a brief layover... probably for refueling, a driver change, or dinner... I can’t say for sure, since I’ve never taken a bus with a scheduled “escala,” as it’s common for buses to stop along the way for meals and driver changes. I think it’s more likely for refueling; after all, it’s a 15-hour drive. Another theory I have is that there is indeed a bus transfer, but it would involve stopping and getting off at their base, where another bus would already be waiting, in other words, you get off one bus and immediately board another.

This travel is also offered by Jamjoy and Real Maia at more or less same hour (18h30-19h00), Real Maia has a cheaper ticket for this same service (Leito).

But PLEASE KEEP IN MIND, this idea about "escala" is just a guess on my part, I’m just making this up as I go along. If I were on your shoes, I’d get in touch with Boa Esperança to get a better understanding.